Learning practices and preferences of dentists

A survey exploring continuing learning practices was mailed to all Connecticut dentists. Questionnaires were returned by 71 of 100 dentists randomly selected for follow-up and by 600 of the remaining 2,490 in the population. Because the two samples had similar ratios of generalists/specialists and the same distribution of years of experience, and responded similarly to almost all questions, the total sample can be accepted as representative of the target population. As resources for learning, the respondents most heavily used personal libraries, continuing education courses and lectures, and consultations with professional peers, spending a total of about 250 hours per year in continuing learning. The same resources were most frequently used to learn a recent, specific treatment procedure. The respondents were also asked the resources they preferred to use. They most frequently indicated two of their most often used resources, i.e., personal libraries and continuing education courses. They relied on unsolicited literature, peers in the same office, and manufacturers' representatives more than they like, and they would prefer to use videotapes, study clubs, and health center libraries more than they presently do. The respondents indicated that their predominant reasons for learning were validation of their current knowledge, intellectual gain, and a moral commitment. The professional learning practices and preferences of dentists are very similar to those already examined in physicians. These observations contain a number of implications for the planning of continuing education programs.