Dentists' outlook toward their profession.

Abstract

Given the dramatic changes presently occurring in the practice of dentistry, it was the purpose of this research to examine the outlook held by practicing dentists toward their profession. Through use of a mailed questionnaire, a national sample of general and pediatric dentists was surveyed. A 12-item Likert scale was used to measure dentist outlook. Additionally, dentists responded to questions dealing with conditions of their practice. Respondents were most positive about the professions' accomplishment in reducing caries by promoting the use of fluorides. The majority also felt that decreased time spent providing restorative services would lead to increased time spent providing other services, that greater use of auxiliaries would produce increased income, that the ADA's proposed marketing plan would have a positive effect on the public, and that research findings were relevant to the private practice of dentistry. Three items received negative responses. These items related to the oversupply of dental manpower, the detrimental effects of the increase in competition among dentists, and the decrease in professional autonomy. Additionally, four practice variables were found to be related to dentist outlook. Outlook became more favorable with increasingly more positive income change over the prior year, with increasing numbers of employees, and with increasing practice business. Finally, the longer a dentist had been out of dental school, the more positive his or her outlook was likely to be.