Educational and Demographic Factors Associated with Self-Reported Confidence in Dental Impression Procedures Among Iraqi Undergraduate Dental Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Objective: This study examined self-reported knowledge confidence and practical confidence in dental impression procedures among Iraqi undergraduate dental students, as well as their relationships with educational and demographic factors.

Methods: Fourth and fifth-year dental students from four public and private dental schools in Iraq participated in this cross-sectional analytical study, which was carried out between February and April of 2025. Data were collected using a structured, self-administered online questionnaire.

Results: A total of 332 students completed the survey, with a response rate of 53.5%. Among the participants, 56.6% considered their training in impression techniques inadequate, while only 22.9% reported previous experience with digital impressions. After adjustment for the other variables, workshop attendance (B = 0.226, p = 0.022) and perceived adequate training (B = 0.197, p = 0.040) were independently associated with higher knowledge confidence. In the primary model, perceived curriculum adequacy was associated with higher practical confidence (B = 0.267, p = 0.013), although the association varied across response categories in the sensitivity analysis. No independent associations were found between institution type, academic year, or digital impression experience and either confidence domain in the adjusted models.

Conclusions: Workshop attendance and perceived adequacy of training were independently associated with higher self-reported knowledge confidence, while perceived curriculum adequacy was independently associated with higher practical confidence. These associations were modest and should be interpreted as relationships with self-reported confidence rather than evidence of causal effects or clinical competence.