Abstract
Aim
To develop a socio-dental impact locus of control scale (SILOC) and to study its relationship with oral health status as well as dental attendance.
Study design
Observational cross-sectional study design.
Method
A seven-item SILOC scale based on locus of control and the WHO international classification of diseases’ criteria for “Disability” in relation to oral health was developed. In the pilot study, 100 adolescent school children returned completed forms containing the multidimensional health locus of control (MHLC) and the (SILOC) scale. After confirmation of reliability and validity, 509 adolescent school children returned completed SILOC questionnaires and were examined for caries, plaque and gingivitis. A history of postponement of needed dental treatment was also elicited.
Results
The SILOC scores were highly correlated with the MHLC scores. Factor analysis revealed a two-factor solution accounting for 59 % of the variance. A Cronbach’s alpha of 0.75 showed its internal consistency. Those with higher SILOC scores had greater levels of caries, plaque, gingivitis, and a history of postponing needed dental visits. Multiple logistic regression analysis after adjusting for potential confounders showed that those with high SILOC scores were more likely to have caries (OR = 3.32, p < 0.001), plaque (OR = 1.83, p = 0.026), gingivitis (OR = 1.80, p = 0.012) and a history of ‘Postponement of needed dental treatment’ (OR = 4.5, p < 0.001) as compared with the others.
Conclusions
The SILOC scale showed satisfactory reliability and validity in measuring locus of control orientation in an Indian adolescent population.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Acharya S, Pentapati KC, Singh S. Influence of socioeconomic status on the relationship between locus of control and oral health. Oral Health Prev Dent. 2011;9:9–16.
Amen MM, Clark VJP. The influence of mothers’ health beliefs on the use of child health care services and mothers’ perception of child health status. Issues Compr Pediatr Nurs. 2001;243:153–63.
Borkowska ED, Watts TLP, Weinman J. The relationship of health beliefs and psychological mood to patient adherence to oral hygiene behavior. J Clin Periodontol. 1998;25:187–93.
Brandao IM, Arcieri RM, Sundefeld ML, Moimaz SA. Early childhood caries: the influence of socio-behavioral variables and health locus of control in a group of children from Araraquara, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Cad Saude Publica. 2006;22:1247–56.
Chase I, Berkowitz RJ, Proskin HM, Weinstein P, Billings R. Clinical outcomes for Early Childhood Caries (ECC): the influence of health locus of control. Eur J Paediatr Dent. 2004;5:76–80.
Corcoran N. Communicating health: strategies for health promotion. London: SAGE Publications Ltd; 2007. p. 32–51.
El-Mangoury NH. Orthodontic cooperation. Am J Orthod. 1981;80:604–22.
Ferrell BA. Pain Management. Clin Geriatr Med. 2000;16:853–74.
Freire MC, Hardy R, Sheiham A. Mothers’ sense of coherence and their adolescent children’s oral health status and behaviours. Community Dent Health. 2002;191:24–31.
Kumar N, Gupta N, Kishore J. Kuppuswamy’s socioeconomic scale: updating income ranges for the year 2012. Indian J Public Health. 2012;56:103–4.
Levenson H. Multidimensional locus of control in psychiatric patients. J Consult Clin Psych. 1973;41:397–404.
Loe H, Silness J. Periodontal disease in pregnancy. I. Prevalence and severity. Acta Odontologica Scand. 1963;21:533–51.
Luszczynska A, Schwarzer R. Multidimensional health locus of control: comments on the construct and its measurement. J Health Psychol. 2005;1:633–42.
Macgregor IDM, Regis D, Balding J. Self-concept and dental health behaviours in adolescents. J Clin Periodontol. 1997;24:335–9.
Norman P, Bennett P. Health Locus of Control. In: Conner M, Norman P, editors. Predicting Health Behaviours: research and practice with social cognition models. Buckingham: Open University Press; 1996. p. 62–94.
Peker K, Bermek G. Oral health: locus of control, health behavior, self-rated oral health and socio-demographic factors in Istanbul adults. Acta Odontol Scand. 2010;69:54–64.
Reisine S, Litt M. Social and psychological theories and their use for dental practice. Int Dent J. 1993;433(S1):279–87.
Rotter JB. Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychol Monogr. 1966;80(1):1–28.
Scruggs RR, Warren DP, Levine P. Juvenile diabetics’ oral health and locus of control. A pilot study. J Dent Hyg. 1989;63:376–81.
Silness J, Loe H. Periodontal disease in pregnancy. II. Correlation between oral hygiene and periodontal conditions. Acta Odontol Scand. 1964;22:121–35.
Strickland BR. Internal-external expectancies and health-related behaviors. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1978;46:1192–211.
Wallston BS, Wallston KA, Kaplan GD, Maides S. The development and validation of the health related locus of control (HLC) scale. J Consut Clin Psychol. 1976;44:580–5.
Wallston KA, Wallston BS, DeVellis R. Development of the multidimensional health locus of control (MHLC) scales. Health Educ Monogr. 1978;6:160–70.
Wallston KA. The validity of the multidimensional health locus of control scales. J Health Psychol. 2005;10:623–31.
West KP, DuRant RH, Pendergrast R. An experimental test of adolescents’ compliance with dental appointments. J Adolesc Health. 1993;14:384–9.
Wolfe GR, Stewart JE, Maeder LA, Hartz GW. Use of dental coping beliefs scale to measure cognitive changes following oral hygiene interventions. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 1996;24:37–41.
World Health Organization. International classification of functioning, disability and health (ICF). Geneva: WHO; 1999.
World Health Organization. Oral health surveys basic methods. 4th ed. Geneva: WHO; 1997.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Acharya, S., Pentapati, K.C., Singhal, D.K. et al. Development and validation of a scale measuring the locus of control orientation in relation to socio-dental effects. Eur Arch Paediatr Dent 16, 191–197 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40368-014-0154-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40368-014-0154-8