Abstract
Objectives : The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the self-efficacy of dental hygiene students to their stressors and ways of stress-adaptation patterns. Methods : The subjects in this study were dental hygiene juniors in four selected colleges located in the metropolitan area. Results : 1. They got a mean of 3.22 in self-efficacy. They gave the highest mark(3.50) to an item 'I can attain it if I set a primary goal.' 2. They got a mean of 3.18 in stressors. Among the stressors, task assignments(3.74) were identified as the greatest stressor, followed by the curriculum(3.25), learning environments(3.16), prospects of employment (3.07) and test anxiety(2.95). 3. They got a mean of 2.02 in stress-adaptation method. They got 2.31 and 1.72 in long-term and short-term adaptation respectively, which showed that long-term stress adaptation method were more prevailing than short-term ones. 4. As a result of analyzing whether there would be any gaps in self-efficacy according to general characteristics, statistically significant gaps were found in that regard according to experience of preparing for college admission after leaving high school, academic standing, satisfaction with the department of dental hygiene and prospects of employment(p<.05). 5. As a result of checking the relationship of their self-efficacy to their stressors and ways of stress adaptation method, there were statistically significant differences in that aspect according to examinations and prospect of employment(p<0.05). As for ways of stress adaptation method, there were statistically significant differences in long-term adaptation method (p<0.05). Conclusions : As it's found that the level of the self-efficacy of the dental hygiene students was linked to the efficiency of their ways of stress adaptation method, the development and implementation of programs geared toward boosting the self-efficacy of dental hygiene students are required to teach them to successfully cope with various kinds of stress that they are likely to face after getting a job.
