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KMID : 0355420090330030484
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Journal of Korean Academy of Oral Health
2009 Volume.33 No. 3 p.484 ~ p.498
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Teachers’ attitude and the factors related to the approval of the community water fluoridation program in Jeollabuk-do, Korea
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Lee Heung-Soo
Oh Hyo-Won
Song Jung-Rok
Choi Mi-Hye
Lee Byong-Gun
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Abstract
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Objectives: The purpose of this study is to survey the arguments in approval of or opposed to the community water fluoridation program ("the program") and the teachers’ attitudes toward the implementation of the program. We also analyzed the factors that affect the attitudes of teachers.
Methods: Questionnaire surveys were conducted on 470 teachers of elementary schools, middle schools and high schools located in various parts of Jeollabuk-do. Based on the surveyed data, the teachers’ arguments in support of or opposed to the program and their attitudes toward the implementation of the program were summarized in frequencies and percentages (%). The factors related to the teachers’ attitudes were analyzed by performing cross tabulation analyses and multiple logistic analyses. The indexes for the relations applied in the cross tabulation analyses were Cramer’s V values.
Results: The percentage of the teachers who accurately knew the objectives of the program was 71.2% and they mostly obtained the information on the program from TV or radio (51.8%). Of their arguments in approval of or opposed to the project, the percentage of teachers who agreed with the opposing arguments was not over 50% in most cases and the percentage of teachers who agreed with the arguments in approval of the program was over 50% for all the four items. Of the arguments in opposition to the program, the percentage of teachers who agreed with the argument that the effects of natural materials and those of artificial materials on human bodies would be different was the highest at 62.2%. Of the arguments in approval of the program, the one with the highest percentage of agreement was the argument that the program was similar to vaccinations. Of the arguments in approval of or in opposed to the program, this argument was the most closely associated with attitudes toward the implementation of the program (Cramer’s V=0.440). Based on the result of the cross tabulation analyses of the attitudes toward the implementation of the program, the factor that was the most closely associated with the attitudes toward the implementation of the program was the type of access to the information on the program (Cramer’s V=0.393) followed by the state of knowledge of the program (Cramer’s V=0.296), the subjective level of knowledge about oral health (Cramer’s V=0.282) and the perception about the objectives of the program (Cramer’s V=0.255) in that order. The factors that affected all of the teachers’ attitudes in approval of and in opposition to the implementation and reserved attitudes were the types of access to the information on the program and the perception of the importance of students’ oral health. When the teachers accessed only information in approval of the program, the higher was the perception of the importance of students’ oral heath, the higher was the possibility to support the project and the possibility of showing opposing or reserved attitudes was low.
Conclusions: Although the teachers’ attitudes toward the program were positive, public relations and education about the program should be reinforced in order to enhance the rate of teachers’ support for the program.
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KEYWORD
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anti-fluoridation, attitude, fluoridation, perception, teacher
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