A Cross-sectional Study to Assess Dental Appointment Attendance, Reflecting the Experiences, Anticipations and Behavioural Intentions Among 18-25 Year-olds

Purpose: To test a hypothetical model suggesting that patients pass through a 'psychological cycle' when undergoing a course of dental care: past appointment experiences influence their anticipation of future dental visits, which in turn affect behavioural intentions to attend appointments. Materials and Methods: Self-administered questionnaires were given to 300 students from 5 different colleges in Bangalore city. The questionnaire assessed variables representing the various stages of the hypothesised model and other relevant variables (dental anxiety, general anxiety, and subjective oral health rating) Results: Sequential regression analysis showed that cognitive factors like negative past experiences (p=0.04), and expectations and anticipation of future dental appointments (p0.001) along with psychological factors like dental anxiety (p=0.05) influenced behavioural intentions to attend future appointments. These findings were consistent with the hypothetical model. Conclusion: The model explains dental appointment attendance behaviour based on the contributions of cognitive factors such as expectation and anticipation of future appointments along with past dental experience and can be used to foster better use of dental care. Keywords: Dental appointment attendance, experiences, anticipation, behavioural intentions