The Acquisition of Dental Skills: Value of Exercise in Teaching Instrumentation

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if there were significant differences in correct dental skill performance through manipulation of the independent variable, hand exercises, and the assigned independent variable, students' hobbies. A Three-Group, nonrandomized, posttest only design utilizing a sample of 48 first-year dental hygiene students was developed. Subjects were assigned to groups on the basis of hobby questionnaire scores. All subjects received the traditional pre-clinical course of instruction. The study entailed a four-week period in which subjects were instructed in explorer instrumentation techniques followed by the administration of a Performance Examination. A Pearson r between hobby questionnaire and explorer performance examination raw scores revealed no significant differences. Analysis of variance revealed no significant differences between group mean performance examination scores. No significant differences in dental skill performance as a result of exercise or hobbies were found.