Abstract
The present study attempted to analyze the influence of the mother's demographic characteristics and knowledge on oral health as well as dental care behaviors on her practice of using dental care institutions. A self-report survey was conducted among 172 mothers of children aged 5-6 attending on three preschools located in Daegu metropolitan city. Statistical analysis was conducted using the SAS 8.01 with $X^2$-test, t-test and logistic regression. The obtained results were as follows: 1. No significant association was found among the demographic characteristics of the mother, her past experience as well as the purpose of using dental care institutions. 2. There was significant relationship between the mother's knowledge and behavior concerning oral health and her past experience of using dental care institutions; the mothers having a higher level of knowledge and who thought they themselves didn't have healthy teeth and gum tended to have more visits to dental care institutions(pE0.05). There was also significant relationship between their purpose and their actual practice of using dental care institutions: the mothers having a higher level of knowledge and who thought their own oral health was good tended to visit dental institutions more for the preventive purpose than for treatments(pE0.05). 3. As a result of logistic regression, the variables formed as models were their knowledge on oral health and their values for oral health. The standardized coefficients for the two variables were -0.19 and 0.19, respectively. For the mother's purpose of visiting dental care institutions, the variables formed as models were their knowledge on oral health and their values for oral health. The standardized coefficients for the two variables were -0.40 and -0.37, respectively. The relative contributions of the two variables to the mother's practice of using dental care institutions were on the similar level.