A Longitudinal Study of Stress in First‐Year Dental Students

Abstract

This study examines the association of stress with performance and health in first-year dental students and changes in the amount and sources of stress over one year. Students at four U.S. dental schools completed the Dental Environment Stress (DES) scale, Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), stress rating, and demographic questions at the start of their first year of school (baseline), 11.7 weeks, and one year later when first-year GPA, illnesses, health ratings, and symptom frequency were also assessed. Overall, 296 (186 men, 110 women) responded at baseline and after one year; 205 responded all three times. Stress scores were negatively correlated with GPA (DES, p=.006; PSS, p=.04; stress rating, p=.002) and with physical and emotional health ratings (p's≤.002), but positively associated with illness (p<.05), symptoms (p<.0001), and symptom frequency (p's<.05). Stress was higher after one year (p's<.001) and varied by school (p<.0001). Women (p<.01), younger (p<.003), and single students (p<.03) had higher stress at baseline, but after one year, there were no differences by gender, age, or marital status. Ratings for items on the Dental Environment Stress scale related to schoolwork were high at baseline and increased further by one year (p's≤.0001); items related to school atmosphere had low ratings initially with large increases over time (p's<.0001). In conclusion, stress increases over time in first-year dental students and is related to detrimental effects on performance and health. Variation between schools may reflect different teaching methods. Changes in sources of stress may reflect the different contributions of anticipatory and situational stress over time. First-year dental students may benefit from stress reduction programs.Ms.

Perceived stress and well-being among dental hygiene and dental therapy students

“…depressive symptoms), but different instruments have been used across the studies, and so it is difficult to make comparisons. 21,22,23 Compared to a recent study which measured students' progress to values, 35 the higher scores for progress towards values, and the low scores for obstruction to values for both groups ( Table 4), showed that DHDTS and the DS were students who reported to be living according to their values. 29 Although valued living is a subjective experience, 'wanting to do' the right thing, in the best interest of the patient for example, is an attribute of professionalism, 9 and is another quality that is of critical importance to a future clinician .…”

“…20 Most research into stress in dental undergraduate students has equated psychological well-being with the presence or absence of stress, or psychological disorders such as depression. 21,22,23 However, research has shown that there are multiple dimensions which contribute to a sense of positive psychological well-being. 24,25 Positively-functioning individuals establish goals, direction, and purpose, which give them a sense of meaning in life.…”

<p>Psychological Stress and Stressors Among Clinical Dental Students at Shiraz School of Dentistry, Iran</p>

“…21 As a result, many researchers have been interested in studying stress levels in undergraduate dental students using a wide range of methods from self-reported questionnaires (such as the Perceived Stress Scale and the Dental Environment Stress (DES) questionnaire) to such methods as examining biological markers. 9,22,23 Many researchers have used the DES questionnaire to identify the sources of stress in dental students. Some studies have used the mean score for each item from the DES questionnaire and others have used the mean scores for the categories that emerged from DES factor analysis to report the causes of stress.…”

“…The mean score was calculated for each item of the DES questionnaire. 9,20 Moreover, the demographic information of the students including age, gender, academic year in dentistry, and marital status were collected.…”

“…8 Another study, however, found that final-year students showed the highest levels of stress and first-year students had the lowest levels of stress among the students. 9 Divaris and Polychronopoulou reported that fourthyear dental students were concerned about their career prospects and the newly arrived students were greatly concerned about the little time of rest. 10 Kumar et al examined the causes of stress among dental students in India and reported that the main causes of stress among the students were the exams, the academic assessment scores at the end of a busy day, and the professors' evaluation of their clinical performance.…”