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Abstract
The objective of the study was to study the effectiveness of a self modeling technique on the oral hygiene skills of mentally retarded adults. The study was conducted in the subjects' home environment and was made up of five study groups of three subjects each. A multiple-baseline research design with yoked subjects and post-treatment evaluation was employed. Fifteen subjects were divided into five groups of three subjects. The subjects were matched as closely as possible on variables of age, functioning level, sex and length of attention span. Two subjects from each of the groups were paired. One subject received toothbrushing instructions through use of a self modeling technique. The self modeling technique consisted of demonstrating to subjects, in their own mouths, as they observed in a mirror how to (1) stain bacterial plaque, (2) remove bacterial plaque with a toothbrush, and (3) check for signs of remaining bacterial plaque. The second subject of each of the five groups acted as a control by having daily bacterial plaque indexes obtained after brushing his/her teeth. The remaining subjects from each group underwent a post-treatment evaluation. In addition to the daily bacterial plaque indexes for treatment and control subjects, weekly periodontal examinations were conducted to detect any changes in gingival tissue. The post-treatment evaluation groups received one gingival and periodontal index at the end of the study period. Data generated by the bacterial plaque and gingival indexes was analyzed in terms of mean differences from baseline to treatment to follow-up phases of the study. The results suggested that the self modeling technique was more effective than daily brushing in teaching mildly and moderately retarded adults how to brush their teeth.
