A comparison of self-reported dental health attitudes and behavior between selected Japanese and Australian students.
To compare cross-cultural differences of dental health behavior, 376 dental students in Japan and 213 in Australia were surveyed using a twenty-item Hiroshima University-Dental Behavior Inventory (HU-DBI) questionnaire (in Japanese and English versions respectively). The mean DBI score of Year 1 Australian students was significantly greater than that of their Japanese peers (Australian 6.56, Japanese 5.57; P < 0.001), which suggested a higher level of dental health awareness in Australian students on entry. Only 7 percent of the Japanese students had been told by their dentist that they were performing a high level of plaque control, as contrasted with 50 percent of the Australian students. Furthermore, while only a small proportion of the Australian students (8 percent) reported a belief that they may eventually require dentures, 37 percent of the Japanese students held this belief (P < 0.001). The mean HU-DBI score of the Japanese students was lower than that of the Australian students until Year 4. Differences between the genders were not a major feature.
Kawamura
M
M
Department of Preventive Dentistry, Hiroshima University School of Dentistry, Japan.
Iwamoto
Y
Y
Wright
F A
FA
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001315:Australia; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D009910:Oral Hygiene / Q000523:psychology*; D010555:Personality Inventory; D013335:Students, Dental / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires