An investigation into the cognitive flexibility of undergraduate dental hygiene students at two dental schools in Asia

Background/purpose: Cognitive flexibility is a personality trait, which can influence how effectively a healthcare professional can manage a challenging clinical situation. This study explored the cognitive flexibility of undergraduate dental hygiene students at two universities in Asia to gather baseline information in order to consider whether there was an educational need for pre-clinical students with regards to this personality factor. Materials and methods: Participants were all undergraduate dental hygiene students in the 2022 academic year at Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU; n = 79) and Taipei Medical University (TMU; n = 88). An anonymous questionnaire was distributed, which included questions on demographic information and the Cognitive Flexibility Inventory (CFI). Results: The response rates were 97.5% (TMDU) and 89.8% (TMU). The CFI total scores were 91.77 for TMDU and 95.87 for TMU, and there was no significant difference between the two schools. The Alternatives scores were significantly higher in TMU than TMDU (P = 0.044), but there were no significant differences in the Control scores between the two schools. There were also no significant differences between school years of both universities. Conclusion: The dental hygiene students from both dental schools exhibit moderate cognitive flexibility. The educators in both dental schools may consider whether they should investigate and develop this personality factor further during the undergraduate training of their dental hygiene students.