This study identified factors that influence dentists' decisions regarding less invasive caries removal techniques such as stepwise removal (SW) and selective removal (SE) using a marketing research technique, conjoint analysis. A survey was sent to 1,434 dentists practicing in Iowa. Dentists were randomly assigned to receive a questionnaire to rate the likelihood they would use either SW/SE in hypothetical clinical scenarios.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDespite evidence often showing differences between groups with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and neurotypical controls in moral judgment, the precise nature of these differences has been difficult to establish. At least two reasons for this are (1) that ASD (and its associated characteristics) is difficult to define and (2) that morality, and the inclinations that undergird it, are hard to measure empirically. These challenges have made conclusive associations between ASD and particular patterns of moral judgment hard to come by.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Private practice dentists are the major source of care for the dental safety net; however, the proportion of dentists who participate in state Medicaid programs is low, often due to poor perceptions of the program's administration and patient population. Using a discrete choice experiment and a series of hypothetical scenarios, this study evaluated trade-offs dentists make when deciding to accept Medicaid patients.
Methods: An online choice-based conjoint survey was sent to 272 general dentists in Iowa.
The area of decision making has much to offer in our effort to understand special populations. This pilot study is an example of just such a project, where we illustrate how traditional decision making tools and tasks can be used to uncover strengths and weaknesses within a growing population of young adults with autism. In this pilot project we extended accounts of autistic behavior such as those derived from "theory of mind" to predict key components of decision making in high-functioning young adults on the autism spectrum.
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