Experiences and characteristics of men working in dental hygiene.

OBJECTIVE/PURPOSE: There is limited research available about men working in the profession of dental hygiene. The purpose of this study was to explore the characteristics and experiences of men in dental hygiene. METHODS: Cross-sectional survey research was conducted with a purposive sample of male dental hygienists (n = 288). Participants were recruited via social media and snowball sampling. The survey was developed based on nursing literature and validated with a panel of experts with a final S-CVI of 98.5%. Descriptive statistics and correlations were used for data analysis. RESULTS: The completion rate was 80.9% (n = 233). Results revealed participants were more likely to be White (59.7%), hold an associate's entry-level dental hygiene degree (60.9%) and work in a private practice dental setting (73.4%). Sixty-one per cent reported full-time employment, and 50% was satisfied or very satisfied with benefits offered by their place of employment. All three sources of gender discrimination (patients, co-workers and employers) were related to experiencing a desire to leave the field. Experiencing gender discrimination from patients indicated a higher likelihood of desire to leave the field (49%) comparatively (33%), χ2  = 5.94, p = 0.02. Half of the respondents reported (56.7%) patients had refused to see them based on their gender. CONCLUSION: This research provides a snapshot of demographics and professional characteristics of male dental hygienists. Gender discrimination from patients emerged as an area that needs to be addressed in practice settings. It will be important to identify ways to make the profession more inviting to encourage men to join the profession.

Work Experiences of Male Dental Hygienists: A qualitative study.

Purpose: The percentage of men entering the dental hygiene profession has increased from less than 1% of the workforce in 1999 to 6.1% in 2020. However, little is known about the experiences of male dental hygienists. The purpose of this study was to explore and better understand the experiences of male dental hygienists.Methods: A qualitative phenomenological research design was used with a purposive sample of male dental hygienists (n=19) recruited via social media groups. Virtual focus groups were conducted and participants were asked open-ended questions to assist in data collection. The data analysis was conducted both manually and with qualitative analysis software. Two investigators independently identified emergent themes and a sub-set of participants participated in member checking of the themes identified.Results: The following major themes were identified: stereotype, "not just because I'm a guy, I'm a dental hygienist," discrimination, reverse discrimination/special treatment, and bringing balance to the work setting. In addition to the major themes, there were also several minor themes identified with the most common being the need for increased male representation in the profession.Conclusion: The findings of this study were consistent with nursing literature regarding the experience of males in female dominated professions. These findings may serve to enhance the positive experiences of being a male in dental hygiene and highlight the need to address the negative experiences such as discrimination to encourage more men to join the profession. Minor themes suggested the need to enhance male representation to make the profession more appealing to men.