Association between self-esteem, critical thinking disposition, and field practice stress of dental laboratory technology students

Abstract

This study was conducted to verify the effects of self-esteem and critical thinking disposition on dental laboratory technology students' field practice stress. Methods:The subjects of the study were 198 dental laboratory technology students with clinical practice experience located in Gyeongsangbuk-do and Gyeongsangnam-do. The collected data were analyzed by t-test, ANOVA, correlation analysis, and linear regression analysis using IBM SPSS Statistics ver. 22.0 (IBM). Results:The average self-esteem, critical thinking disposition, and field practice stress scores were 3.76, 3.50, and 2.40, respectively. There was a significant correlation between self-esteem, critical thinking disposition, and field practice stress. It was found that the higher the self-esteem, the lower was the field practice stress. On the contrary, among the sub-items of critical thinking disposition, when intellectual fairness increased, the field practice stress decreased; however, when healthy skepticism increased, the field practice stress increased. Conclusion:Self-esteem and critical thinking disposition were both found to have a substantial effect on field practice stress. Therefore, various educational programs need to increase self-esteem and cultivate critical thinking skills for a successful field practice and field practice stress relief of laboratory technology students.