Prediction of behavior management problems in children

Abstract – The aim of the present investigation was to study non-dental and dental background variables with a view to estimating their influence on behavior management problems by means of a structured interview and analyzing their separate and combined predictive power. The material consisted of a case group, 101 children aged 3–16 yr, referred for management problems to clinics of specialized pedodontics, and a control group, individually matched with the cases as regards age, sex, residential area, number of tooth surfaces restored, and dentist. The children or their parents were interviewed concerning background variables. Logistic regression was used for the analyses. Three non-dental variables turned out to be statistically significant as predictors (P<0.05): problems on visiting a medical doctor, dental fear in the mother or father, and anxiety when meeting unfamiliar people. Management problems might be expected if one of these attributes is found. Four dental variables had significant predictive power: earlier problems on seeing a dentist, dislike of the dentist, not enough time to adjust to the dental situation, and fear of injection. However, none of these dental variables was found to have predictive power in 3–6-yr-olds, and none of them improved the predictive power of the three main non-dental variables.