Factors Predicting Patients’ Willingness to Use Robotic Dental Services

Prior research into automated dental procedures has largely focused on design and engineering issues; however, there is very little research that investigates the public’s perceptions of, or their willingness to undergo, robotic dentistry. Therefore, the purpose of the current study is to better understand the characteristics of a person who would be willing to undergo robotic dental cleanings by building a predictive model. Using a correlational research design with regression, two stages were utilized to complete the study. Through two stages of research, 475 participants were recruited via an online database. Stage one evaluated several statistical factors on user willingness to create a predictive regression model. Stage two employed a secondary sample to validate the predictive model created in stage one by testing the regression equation for model fit. This predictive model accounted for approximately 82% of the variance in willingness to use dental robots for cleanings. The significant predictors were feelings of fear, feelings of happiness, complexity, useful factor, fun factor, fear of dental visits, and age respectively. These results are useful for the design and marketing of dental robots.