The Level of Exposure-Dental Experiences Questionnaire (LOE-DEQ): a measure of severity of exposure to distressing dental events.
To understand the development of dental anxiety better and to identify those at increased risk of developing dental anxiety, the Level of Exposure-Dental Experiences Questionnaire (LOE-DEQ) was developed. The aim of the current study was to determine the psychometric properties (i.e. factor structure, reliability, and validity) of the LOE-DEQ and to determine its suitability as an additional screening instrument for dentally anxious patients. Five different samples were used: (i) highly dentally anxious patients (n = 119); (ii) general dental patients (n = 480); (iii) students (n = 186); (iv) psychiatric outpatients (n = 17); and (v) oral surgery patients (n = 34). Results of the factor analysis revealed a four-factor solution. The LOE-DEQ has sufficient internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha values ranging from 0.69 to 0.85) and satisfactory test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.78). The results further suggest that this instrument has adequate discriminant, concurrent, and predictive validity. It is concluded that the LOE-DEQ is a useful tool for assessing patients' background in terms of previous exposure to distressing dental events, which is considered a vulnerability factor in the development of dental anxiety.
Oosterink
Floor M D
FM
Department of Social Dentistry and Behavioural Sciences, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA), Louwesweg, EA Amsterdam, the Netherlands. f.oosterink@acta.nl
de Jongh
Ad
A
Hoogstraten
Johan
J
Aartman
Irene H A
IH
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002648:Child; D003213:Conditioning, Psychological; D016854:Dental Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology*; D003812:Dentist-Patient Relations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019647:Oral Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000523:psychology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011594:Psychometrics; D012044:Regression Analysis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires