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Abstract
Objectives: The aim of cross-sectional study was to investigate the association between sensory processing patterns and dental fear among female undergraduates.
Material and methods: Three hundred and ten female university students were included in the present study. Dental fear and sensory processing patterns were measured using the Dental Fear Survey and Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile with other possible confounders, respectively. Sensory processing patterns were categorized into sensory sensitivity, sensory avoidance, low registration and sensation seeking. We conducted structural equation modelling based on the hypothesis that sensory processing directly affects dental fear, including the confounding role of negative experiences with dentistry, autistic traits and the mediating role of trait anxiety.
Results: Based on our proposed model, sensory processing patterns, excluding sensation seeking and negative experiences significantly contributed to dental fear (β = 0.33, p < .001 and β = 0.32, p < .001, respectively) and autistic traits and trait anxiety did not significantly contribute to dental fear.
Conclusions: Extreme sensory processing patterns seem to be associated with a high level of dental fear; thus, the difference in sensory processing might play an important role in the aetiology of dental fear.
Acknowledgments
We acknowledge Professor Naoki Kakudate for study design, Professor Ryoichiro Iwanaga for the terminology of sensory processing, and all the participants. The authors would like to thank Enago (www.enago.jp) for the English language review.
Disclosure statement
The authors report no conflict of interest.
Data availability
Data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, W. S., upon reasonable request.