The role of regulatory focus types in the improvement of perinatal oral health knowledge among dental residents.

Abstract

This study aims to assess dental residents' perinatal oral health (POH) knowledge and Regulatory Focus Types' (RFT) impact on their knowledge before and after education. A total of 53 dental residents from upstate New York participated from 2019 to 2021. A validated questionnaire collected demographic data, resident's POH knowledge, RFT, and self-reported burnout levels. In the wave 1 cross-sectional setting, 22 residents participated; while in the wave 2 longitudinal setting, 31 residents completed the questionnaire at the baseline and an 1-hour POH lecture. Multiple linear regression assesses factors related to baseline and post-education POH knowledge and burnout, and logistic regression examined factors related to the RFT types (high-on-promotion and high-on-prevention). Overall, 43.40% of the dental residents were high-on-promotion focus, and 47.17% were high-on-prevention focus. Baseline POH knowledge was relatively low, with an average score of 2.57±1.05 out of the maximum score of 5. Residents with high promotion-focus had statistically significant lower scores on the baseline POH (p<0.05), while high prevention-focused residents demonstrated less improvement of POH following perinatal oral health education (p<0.05). Residents who were high on-promotion appeared to have a lower burnout rate (p<0.001). The study revealed that education effectively enhanced POH knowledge among participating dental residents. RFT significantly influenced knowledge improvement, with high promotion-focused residents showing more substantial gains. To encourage adherence to perinatal oral health policies and guidelines among dental practitioners, future educational approach should consider practitioners' RFT to improve knowledge adoption.