title: Social ranking effects on tooth-brushing behaviour.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A tooth-brushing social rank hypothesis is tested suggesting tooth-brushing duration is influenced when individuals position their behaviour in a rank when comparing their behaviour with other individuals.
  
  
  METHODS
  Study 1 used a correlation design, Study 2 used a semi-experimental design, and Study 3 used a randomized intervention design to examine the tooth-brushing social rank hypothesis in terms of self-reported attitudes, cognitions, and behaviour towards tooth-brushing duration.
  
  
  METHODS
  Study 1 surveyed participants to examine whether the perceived health benefits of tooth-brushing duration could be predicted from the ranking of each person's tooth-brushing duration. Study 2 tested whether manipulating the rank position of the tooth-brushing duration influenced participant-perceived health benefits of tooth-brushing duration. Study 3 used a longitudinal intervention method to examine whether messages relating to the rank positions of tooth-brushing durations causally influenced the self-report tooth-brushing duration.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Study 1 demonstrates that perceptions of the health benefits from tooth-brushing duration are predicted by the perceptions of how that behaviour ranks in comparison to other people's behaviour. Study 2 demonstrates that the perceptions of the health benefits of tooth-brushing duration can be manipulated experimentally by changing the ranked position of a person's tooth-brushing duration. Study 3 experimentally demonstrates the possibility of increasing the length of time for which individuals clean their teeth by focusing on how they rank among their peers in terms of tooth-brushing duration.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The effectiveness of interventions using social-ranking methods relative to those that emphasize comparisons made against group averages or normative guidelines are discussed.
  What is already known on this subject? Individual make judgements based on social rank information. Social rank information has been shown to influence positive health behaviours such as exercise. What does this study add? The health benefits of tooth-brushing are predicted by how tooth-brushing duration ranks within a distribution. Focussing on how teeth-cleaning duration ranks among others produces longer teeth-cleaning durations.
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, Biological Sciences and Psychology, Leicester University, UK.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Maltby
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, Biological Sciences and Psychology, Leicester University, UK.
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Paterson
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Sociology and Politics, Sheffield Hallam University, UK.
authors.forename: Liz
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Day
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, Biological Sciences and Psychology, Leicester University, UK.|The Firs Glenfield Hospital, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, UK.
authors.forename: Ceri
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, Biological Sciences and Psychology, Leicester University, UK.
authors.forename: Hayley
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kinnear
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Queen's Medical Centre, University of Nottingham, UK.
authors.forename: Heather
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Buchanan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D010379:Peer Group; D012649:Self Concept; D012938:Social Perception; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D013997:Time Factors; D014099:Toothbrushing / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: hygiene; oral; rank; tooth-brushing