Table 1:
Demographic characteristics of the study sample.
| N (%) / Mean (SD) Total sample |
Irregular attender |
Regular attender |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State (n = 868) | ||||
| West Virginia | 564 (60.5%) | 326 (57.8%) | 238 (42.2%) | |
| Pennsylvania | 304 (35.0%) | 88 (28.9%) | 216 (71.1%) | |
| Sex (n = 868) | ||||
| Men | 306 (35.3%) | 177 (42.8%) | 129 (28.4%) | |
| Women | 562 (64.7%) | 237 (57.2%) | 325 (71.6%) | |
| Age (n = 868) | 34.6 (9.2) | 33.9 (8.8) | 35.3 (9.4) | |
| Dental insurance (n = 868) | ||||
| Yes | 387 (44.6%) | 112 (27.1%) | 275 (60.6%) | |
| No | 481 (55.4%) | 302 (72.9%) | 179 (39.4%) | |
| Education (n = 868) | ||||
| No high school diploma | 103 (11.9%) | 71 (17.1%) | 32 (7.0%) | |
| High School diploma/GED | 385 (44.4%) | 208 (50.2%) | 177 (39.0%) | |
| Technical school | 117 (13.5%) | 57 (13.8%) | 60 (13.2%) | |
| Some college, no degree | 114 (13.1%) | 41 (9.9%) | 73 (16.1%) | |
| Undergraduate degree | 100 (11.5%) | 30 (7.2%) | 70 (15.4%) | |
| Graduate degree | 49 (5.6%) | 7 (1.2%) | 42 (9.3%) | |
| Household Income* (n = 868) | ||||
| Less than 10,000 | 185 (21.3%) | 115 (27.8%) | 70 (15.4%) | |
| 10,000 to 14,999 | 148 (17.1%) | 85 (20.5%) | 63 (13.9%) | |
| 15,000 to 24,999 | 176 (20.3%) | 95 (22.9%) | 81 (17.8%) | |
| 25,000 to 34,999 | 117 (13.5%) | 52 (12.6%) | 65 (14.3%) | |
| 35,000 to 49,999 | 126 (14.5%) | 47 (11.4%) | 79 (17.4%) | |
| 50,000 to 74,999 | 64 (7.4%) | 11 (2.7%) | 53 (11.7%) | |
| 75,000 to 99,999 | 31 (3.6%) | 7 (1.7%) | 24 (5.3%) | |
| 100,000 to 149,999 | 16 (1.8%) | 2 (0.5%) | 14 (3.1%) | |
| 150,000 to 199,999 | 1 (0.1%) | 0 (0.0%) | 1 (0.2 %) | |
| 200,000 or more | 4 (0.5%) | 0 (0.0%) | 4 (0.9%) | |
| Dental Fear Survey (n = 868) | ||||
| Total Score | α+ = .97 | 36.4 (17.7) | 38.4 (19.2) | 34.62 (16.0) |
| Avoidance | α = .95 | 12.9 (7.2) | 14.0 (8.0) | 12.0 (6.3) |
| Specific Stimuli | α = .95 | 14.6 (7.5) | 15.0 (7.9) | 14.1 (7.2) |
| Physiological Response | α = .91 | 8.9 (4.6) | 9.4 (4.9) | 8.5 (4.2) |
| Oral health fatalism (n = 868) | α = .68 | 7.6 (2.6) | 8.4 (2.7) | 6.8 (2.4) |
| Dental Neglect Scale (n = 868) | α = .71 | 19.8 (5.2) | 17.4 (4.6) | 22.0 (4.7) |
*
The Federal Poverty Level (FPL) for a family of four at beginning of data collection (2000) was $17,050 and at end of data collection (2008) was $21,200.
+
Cronbach’s α indicates the internal consistency reliability for each of the scales or subscales for the current sample