Comparison of United States and Korean dental hygiene students using the Hiroshima university-dental behavioural inventory(HU-DBI).
OBJECTIVE
To compare cross-national differences of dental health behaviour among dental hygiene students.


METHODS
Cross-cultural differences.


METHODS
United States (USA) and Korea.


METHODS
One hundred and twenty-six dental hygiene students in USA and 246 in Korea were surveyed using the Hiroshima University-Dental Behavioural Inventory (HU-DBI) (in English and Korean versions respectively).


RESULTS
There were considerable differences in oral health behaviour between USA and Korean dental hygiene students. Of great significance were findings that while only a small proportion of the USA students (1%) reported gum bleeding when they brushed their teeth, 37% of the Korean students did so (P<0.001). Furthermore, only 19% of the Korean students had been told by their dentist that they were performing a high level of plaque control, contrasted with 76% of the USA students. Logistic regression model showed that it was possible to distinguish USA students from Korean peers with a probability of more than 90% by using the HU-DBI.


CONCLUSIONS
There were considerable differences in dental health attitudes/behaviour among dental hygiene students in the two countries. The variation in the favourable attitudes/behaviour toward oral health appeared to reflect the students' clinical training experience in Korea.
Kawamura
Makoto
M
Department of Preventive Dentistry, Hiroshima University School of Dentistry, Japan. makoto@hiroshima-u.ac.jp
Spadafora
Agnes
A
Kim
Kang-Ju
KJ
Komabayashi
Takashi
T
D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003479:Curriculum; D003729:Dental Care; D003756:Dental Hygienists / Q000193:education*; D003773:Dental Plaque / Q000517:prevention & control; D005260:Female; D005884:Gingival Hemorrhage / Q000145:classification; D006209:Halitosis / Q000145:classification; D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D009909:Oral Health; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011336:Probability; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013334:Students; D014099:Toothbrushing; D014481:United States