Jarvie Journal - College of Dental Medicine - Columbia University

Volume 56, Spring 2013
Knowledge and Attitudes of Dental Students Towards Performing Research
Joseph Wang, Carol Kunzel*
College of Dental Medicine, Columbia University, NY, NY * Faculty Mentor
Introduction: Columbia University’s College of Dental Medicine (CDM) maintains a robust research program. Yet many
students, especially new students, may not be aware of how to become involved in dental research. A multitude of factors can
play a role in a student’s decision to conduct research. In addition to factors of knowledge, a student’s attitude and perceived
expectations may also influence the decision to perform research.
Objective: 1) To learn more about the knowledge and attitudes of current CDM students towards involvement in research; 2)
To identify the most influential variables in predicting involvement in a) research following dental school (MODEL 1), b)
joining the Jarvie Society (MODEL 2), and c) contacting a faculty member regarding research opportunities (MODEL 3).
Materials & Methods: Study subjects were 1 st -year CDM dental students (n=80). A total of 69 subjects participated (response
rate = 86%). A 2-page paper questionnaire was developed to include questions and statements relating to: topics available in
research, location and timing of research, the purpose of research, compliance awareness, sources of information, attitudes
toward research, and website usability. Participants were asked to agree or disagree with each statement in the questionnaire,
with responses ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree).
Results: About 59% of the participating subjects reported that they had experience in prior research. When asked about what
career they would like to pursue, 66.7% are considering specializing, 21.7% are considering GPR/AEGD, and 18.8% are
considering academia. Using factor analysis, 7 groupings of variables were created: 1) knowledge of people in dental research,
2) motivation by rewards and competition, 3) knowledge of locations to perform research, 4) knowledge of topics of dental
research, 5) perceived importance of research, 6) positive perception of research, and 7) perceived expectations from others.
Three predictive models were created in order to predict different intentions and behaviors of students, and all three models
were regressed against these 7 variable groups.
MODEL 1 focused on involvement with research following dental school (R 2 =.45). The two most influential predictors were
positive perception of research (B=.33, p=.008) and perceived importance of research (B=.27, p=.045). MODEL 2 focused on
whether students join the Jarvie Society, the dental student research club at CDM (R 2 =.52). The three most influential predictors
were perceived importance of research (B=.30, p=.019), motivation by rewards and competition (B=.30, p=.022), and perceived
expectations of others (B=.26, p=.025). MODEL 3 focused on whether students contacted a faculty member regarding research
opportunities (R 2 =.56). The three most influential predictors were knowledge of people in dental research (B=.39, p