Journal article
Preliminary Validation of an Instrument to Assess Students’ Perceptions of Clinical Learning Environments at U.S. Dental Schools
Journal of Dental Education, Vol.82(6), pp.575-580
06/2018
DOI: 10.21815/JDE.018.064
PMID: 29858253
Abstract
Research on dental students’ perceptions of clinical learning environments is needed to identify strengths, weaknesses, and need for interventions to sustain high‐quality dental education, but a primary challenge has been the absence of an instrument designed to assess these perceptions. The Dental Clinical Learning Environment Instrument (DECLEI) is a new instrument developed specifically for dental clinical learning environments according to psychometric standards and validated in Europe. The aim of this study was to perform a preliminary validation of DECLEI in a U.S. dental school, thus providing data for subsequent validation in a larger, multi‐institution sample. After five experienced faculty members assessed DECLEI's item relevance and content validity, the instrument was distributed in 2016 to 144 third‐ and fourth‐year dental students at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry & Dental Clinics. All 144 questionnaires were completed (100% response rate). The results were tabulated and submitted to principal component analysis with an orthogonal rotation to assess internal structure of the measure. Internal consistency reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient and corrected item‐total correlations. The results showed that, of the initial 24 items, principal component analysis allowed 18 items grouped in five domains: student‐faculty interaction, equipment and patient issues, didactic‐clinical components interaction, negative perceptions, and self‐assessment. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients for these five domains ranged from 0.52 to 0.80. These results suggest that DECLEI has the potential for use as a reliable instrument to assess students’ perceptions of clinical learning environments at U.S. dental schools, thus supporting the need for a definitive validation analysis in a larger sample.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Preliminary Validation of an Instrument to Assess Students’ Perceptions of Clinical Learning Environments at U.S. Dental Schools
- Creators
- Nicole R Krois - College of Dentistry & Dental Clinics, University of IowaAnastasia E Kossioni - National and Kapodistrian University of AthensPatrick B Barlow - University of Iowa, Internal MedicineCheryl L Straub-Morarend - University of Iowa, Family DentistryLeonardo Marchini - University of Iowa, Preventive and Community Dentistry
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of Dental Education, Vol.82(6), pp.575-580
- Publisher
- American Dental Education Association
- DOI
- 10.21815/JDE.018.064
- PMID
- 29858253
- ISSN
- 0022-0337
- eISSN
- 1930-7837
- Number of pages
- 6
- Grant note
- This study was supported in part by the Iowa Dental Research Grant and the Richard L. and Nancy M. Christiansen Professorship in International Oral Health Education and Research at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry & Dental Clinics.
- Comment
- The authors would like to acknowledge Drs. Sandra Guzman-Armstrong, Nidhi Handoo, Kecia Leary, and Justine Kolker for their invaluable help on this project.
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 06/2018
- Academic Unit
- Preventive and Community Dentistry; Center for Social Science Innovation; Office of Consultation and Research in Medical Education
- Record Identifier
- 9983763592802771
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