DESIRED CONTROL, FELT CONTROL, AND DENTAL PAIN - RECENT FINDINGS AND REMAINING ISSUES

This paper reviews a series of studies examining how desire for control among dental patients affects their reaction to dental treatment. This research (across eight samples) indicates that low perceived control is associated with heightened stressful responding before and during dental treatment only among patients reporting high desire for control. Thus, the impact of low perceived control appears to be moderated by desire for control. An additional finding is that manipulations of control (eg., providing information, stress inoculation training) primarily impact patients reporting both a high desire for control (during treatment) and low initial perceived control. These data suggest that consideration of patients' desire for control in addition to their perceived control increases our ability to predict their level of dental stress. Additionally, these data provide initial support for the view that the discrepancy between high desire for control and low perceived control play a causal role in patient's perceptions of dental pain and fear.