(PO-080) Career Satisfaction and Occupational Commitment Levels of Dental Hygiene Educators

Author: Amy N. Smith, RDH, MS, MPH – Assistant Professor, Georgia State University
Submitter: Amy N. Smith, RDH, MS, MPH – Assistant Professor, Georgia State University

Objectives: Over the past decade, dental hygiene educators have begun leaving academia, and a shortage has, and will continue to, impact dental hygiene educational programs in the US. This study explored the career satisfaction and occupational commitment levels of dental hygiene educators. Discovering potential connections between these variables could be valuable to dental hygiene program administrators. This knowledge may help guide future professional development courses, mentoring programs, and recruitment and retention strategies to help alleviate the educator shortage.

Methods: An electronic survey including questions pertaining to demographics, career satisfaction, and occupational commitment was sent to dental hygiene program directors for dissemination among their faculty. Only full-time, dental hygiene educators who taught didactic courses were included in the survey

Results: Survey questions were modified from the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire and TCM Employee Commitment Survey respectively.

Results: (in progress)Completed surveys were returned from 143 dental hygiene educators ages 25 to 74 years. Of those, 89% earned a master’s degree or higher, 81% are current ADEA members, and 90% are current ADHA members.

Conclusion: (in progress)Preliminary results show high career satisfaction levels and moderate/high occupational commitment levels among dental hygiene educators. Areas that earned a large portion of unsatisfied scores included those pertaining to supervisor competence, administrative controls, and compensation. Most participants were satisfied with their autonomy and the ability to fully utilize their education and training. These findings are similar to previous research results but offer no insight into why dental hygiene educators are leaving the profession. Although the majority of participants agreed to being very happy at the thought of spending the rest of their career with their organization, more than half said they stayed out of necessity rather than desire. These conflicting results show a need for more detailed research to uncover the true commitment of dental hygiene educators.