In order to prevent periodontal disease and tooth loss, dental authorities recommend that adults should brush and floss their teeth daily and should have regular preventive dental visits. While most American adults brush daily, only about half of them visit a dentist in any given year, and fewer than one out of five floss their teeth daily. The proposed research will attempt to determine why adults do or do not follow each of these recommendations. The research will also test the joint impact of these three preventive actions on periodontal health. The project will be guided by theory and research in psychology, public health, and dentistry.
The specific aims are (a) to identify the beliefs, experiences, and other variables that are important predictors of the three periodontal disease preventive behaviors, (b) to test the effects of the three behaviors on oral health outcomes (plaque, calculus, gingivitis, and periodontal disease), (c) to determine the level of the three preventive behaviors and of their predictors and outcomes in the general population and in selected subpopulations, (d) to identify sources of information about dental health that are used and trusted, and (e) to refine and validate measures of the predictor variables. On the basis of the research findings, recommendations will be made for health education interventions to encourage people to brush, floss, and obtain preventive dental care. The subjects will be a probability sample of 800 adults residing in the Detroit tri-county area. Data will be collected by (a) face to face interview, (b) observations of demonstrated oral hygiene behaviors, and (c) dental examinations. Dental hygienists will conduct the observations and examinations. Respondents' reports of dental visits will be confirmed by checking with their dentists. Multivariate data analyses will be used to determine which variables contribute to prediction when other variables are controlled and to assess the joint effects of the three preventive actions on oral health.
