The relationship between temperament and behavior in 3–7‑year‑old children during dental treatment

Various factors affect child behavior in different situations such as in a dental clinic. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between temperament and child behavior during routine dental treatment.

The present study is a descriptive‑analytic study that included 199 children aged 3–7‑years from patients referred to a dental clinic of Guilan University of Medical Sciences in 2017–2018. The Children’s Behavior Questionnaire, which is specific to children aged 3–7 years, was used to assess children’s dental temperament. Children’s behaviors during dental treatment were recorded using Frankl scale. Finally, the data were analyzed by the SPSS‑16 statistical software.

About 47.9% of the samples were female, with a mean temperament score of 4.79 which was significantly higher than males (P < 0.05). Almost 2.4% of children had completely negative behaviors and 2.8% had a completely positive behavior. The mean scores of fear (P = 0.008) and anger (P = 0.004) in children with completely negative behavior were higher than those with completely positive behavior. Moreover, the average scores of inhibitory control (P = 0.003) and perceptual sensitivity (P = 0.001) in completely positive children were higher than completely negative children.

The results of the present study showed that girls had a better mean score of temperament than boys. The inhibitory control and perceptual sensitivity in completely positive children were significantly higher than negative children. In addition, a higher mean score of fear and anger was observed in completely negative children.