The present proposed investigation is designed to evaluate the short-and long-term effectiveness of a videotaped behavioral intervention for increasing patient satisfaction, and for reducing anticipatory anxiety and distress during dental prophylaxis, examination, and treatment procedures. The study will be conducted in an actual clinical practice setting. The relative efficacy of a short videotaped intervention versus a longer and more comprehensive intervention will also be assessed. Subjects will be randomly assigned to one of five office groups (60 subjects/groups): (a) a 30-minute videotaped behavioral intervention consisting of a number of techniques that have been found to effectively modify dental anxiety; (b) a 15-minute videotaped behavioral intervention which will be an abbreviated version of the longer one; (c) a 30-minute videotaped placebo intervention which will control for general attention, expectancy, and suggestion effects; (d) a 15-minute videotaped placebo which will be an abbreviated version of the longer one; (e) a no-treatment control condition. There will be an equal number (20) of low, moderate, and high dentally anxious patients in each group. Pre - and post-intervention assessment will be conducted for the following dependent measures: self-reported anxiety as measured by the Spielberger State Anxiety Subscale, and a recently developed anxiety response interval scale; physiological reactivity (heart rate, as well as systolic and diastolic blood pressure); behavioral observational ratings (evaluated only during the post-intervention assessments). In addition, data on perceived satisfaction with the dental experience will also be collected. It is hypothesized that the videotaped behavioral intervention will significantly decrease anticipatory anxiety and perceived distress during the dental procedures, relative to the placebo and no-treatment conditions. Perceived satisfaction with the dental procedures will also be greater in the behavioral intervention conditions.
| Carpenter, D J; Gatchel, R J; Hasegawa, T (1994) Effectiveness of a videotaped behavioral intervention for dental anxiety: the role of gender and the need for information. Behav Med 20:123-32 |
