Functional analysis of dentists´ professional performance

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to identify variables that affect dentist’s behavior in dental treatment situation. Functional analysis of behavior was used as a basis to describe patient’s behavior and management procedures implemented by the dentist during dental sessions. Three non-cooperative dental patients (P1, P2, P3) and a dentist participated as subjects. All the sessions (19) were videotaped and subsequently observed. For all the children, the dentist used the same clinical sequence of procedures. Using a double blind design, the children were given, in each session, placebo or diazepam (0.3 mg/kg) after the first session considered as base line. The dentist was instructed not to use physical restraint during the first 5 treatment sessions. Children’s cooperative behavior during a dental treatment session was followed by playing activities at the end of each session. In this situation dentist and child had a free interaction time. Behaviors and dental clinical procedures were recorded in 15 seconds intervals. Results indicated that “guidance” and “clinical procedures” were the more frequent behavior categories used by dentist and evoked cooperative behavior with two patients (p1 and P2). Fro patient 3, during the five first sessions the use of strategies “guidance” and “persuasion” were ineffective to evoke cooperation. Beginning in the 6^th dental session, the dentist established control conditions to force coping to dental treatment and cooperation. Diazepam used in this research was not effective to affect children’s behavior. Results revealed that children’s behavior pattern and their dental previous experiences produced a particular dentist’s behavior. Functional analysis revealed a valuable instrument to identify the relations between different behaviors classes and variables present in dental situation.