Relationships of admissions data and measurements of psychological constructs with psychomotor performance of dental technology students.

Abstract: The psychomotor skills required in dental laboratory technology and dentistry are similar. Dental educators have recognized the problems in selecting from among dental school applicants those with potential psychomotor skills. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships of admissions data and measurements of psychological constructs of dental technology students with their psychomotor performance in first-semester dental laboratory courses. The dependent variables selected for the study were grades from three laboratory courses. Significant positive correlations (p<.05) were noted between all laboratory grades and previous college hours, previous college GPA, interview scores, field dependence-independence scores, block counting, trust, straightforwardness, and dutifulness. These data indicate that individual differentiation in learning ability, visual or spatial perception, and personality do affect psychomotor learning and should be taken into consideration in the design and execution of teaching and training curricula.