Influence of age, gender, and previous dental experience on children’s preferences for dentist attire: An observational study

BACKGROUND Treating young children in dental settings often poses a significant challenge, largely due to their ingrained fear and unease around white coats. These anxieties can stem from prior personal dental experiences, hearing peers’ stories, or simply being in a clinical environment. The stress intensifies when children encounter the traditional attire and atmosphere of dental clinics, making visits distressing. Understanding a child’s preferences - such as the dentist’s attire and mask, their previous visit experiences, and even the dentist’s gender - empowers dental professionals to tailor their approach and create a more comforting experience. AIM To explore how children’s gender, age, and history of dental visits influence their preferences for a dentist’s gender, attire. METHODS An observational study is conducted among 239 children aged 7 years to 15 years who visited the Department of Pediatric and Department of Preventive Dentistry. The following data were collected on each child’s age, gender, previous dental visit history, and their preference regarding the gender of the dentist who would perform their treatment (male, female, or either). Children’s preference for the dentist’s attire, mask color data was collecting by showing a series of hand drawn pictures of dentists in from traditional white coats, formal attire, professional green scrubs, or cartoon-themed clothing along with mask color from white, blue, green, or pink. Participants are asked to pick their choice of dentist attire, and asked to explain why they preferred a particular type of attire. RESULTS Most children preferred to be treated by female dentists. Boys showed a strong preference for male dentists, while girls favored female dentists. Both younger and middle-aged children, regardless of previous dental experience, preferred female dentists. Older children expressed that they were comfortable being treated by either a male or female dentist. Traditional white coat attire was the most favored choice, followed by child-friendly cartoon-themed attire. CONCLUSION Age, gender, and prior dental experiences remain important factors shaping children’s preferences for a dentist’s appearance. As children mature, their fear of the white coat tends to diminish, and preferences for a specific dentist gender or child-friendly mask types also decrease. Nonetheless, it is important to recognize that beyond appearance, qualities such as communication skills, behavior, and the dentist’s attitude have a greater influence on the child-dentist relationship.