Effectiveness of Motivational Interviewing in Promoting Oral Health Among Children

April 29, 2026 updated by: Lamis D. Rajab

Effectiveness of Motivational Interviewing Versus Traditional Patient Education in Promoting Oral Health Among Children

The goal of this clinical study is to compare the effect of motivational interviewing (MI) and traditional patient education methods in improving oral hygiene (plaque score and bleeding score) among young children 8-10. It will also assess the demographic (age and sex) and socioeconomic indicators' effect on oral hygiene (plaque score and bleeding score) after intervention.

The main questions this study aims to answer are:

  • Is MI significantly more effective in improving oral health (plaque score, bleeding score) among children when compared to traditional patient education methods?
  • Are there specific demographic or contextual factors (e.g., age, socioeconomic status, baseline oral health status) that influence the effectiveness of MI in promoting oral health among children when compared to traditional patient education methods?

Participants will be randomly assigned to three groups to receive oral hygiene instructions: verbal and written, video, and motivational interviewing.

Have their oral hygiene assessed using the plaque index and bleeding index before the intervention and after a follow-up period of 1 month.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This clinical study aims to compare the effect of motivational interviewing (MI) and traditional patient education methods in improving oral hygiene (plaque score and bleeding score) among young children aged 8-10. The study is a randomized clinical trial that will be conducted among healthy pediatric patients attending the pediatric dentistry clinics at the University of Jordan Hospital.

Patients who meet the inclusion criteria and give consent will be randomly assigned to three groups:

  1. Verbal and written instructions group: Basic oral hygiene instruction will be given to this group on a model of the mouth and then supported by written instructions.
  2. Video monitored (VIDEO) group: Uploaded from the National Health Service (NHS) website and translated to the patient's mother tongue (Arabic).
  3. Motivational interviewing (MI) group: The participants will join the motivation sessions one-to-one, face-to-face, with the primary researcher, who will be trained and calibrated to provide MI and take sessions with qualified psychologists.

Oral hygiene will be assessed using two parameters:

Plaque index scoring: 0/1 Bleeding on probing score: 0/1 Each patient will be examined twice: the first time is before the intervention, and the second is after a follow-up period of 1 month.

The study will also investigate the influence of age, sex, and socioeconomic status on oral hygiene improvement.

The findings of this research aim to contribute to the growing body of literature on MI and inform public health strategies aimed at reducing the global burden of childhood dental diseases.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

75

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Children who are medically healthy
  • Children with normal manual dexterity
  • Children whose parents/guardians provide informed consent
  • Children not currently receiving orthodontic therapy
  • Children who do not require periodontal specialty care
  • Children with normal occlusion or mild, non-treatment-requiring malocclusion

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Children with systematic, or syndromic disease
  • Children with special health care needs
  • Children with poor manual dexterity
  • Children with negative consents.
  • Children with current orthodontic therapy
  • Children with chronic diseases.
  • Children on medications that may cause drug-induced gingivitis.
  • Children who attend periodontal clinics.
  • Children with malocclusion

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Video
Other: Video for oral hygiene instructions
A video about oral hygiene instructions uploaded from NHS and translated for the mother tongue language of the participants
Experimental: Motivational interviewing
Behavioral: Motivational interviewing oral hygiene instructions
Brief motivational interviewing session for each patient for around 20-30 minutes
Experimental: Written and verbal instructions
Other: Written and verbal oral hygiene instructions
Basic oral hygiene instruction will be given verbally and then supported by written instructions.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Plaque index
Time Frame: From enrollment to the 4-week follow-up appointment
The primary researcher will document the plaque index for each patient prior to the intervention and after the follow-up appointment after 1 month using Plaque Control Index scoring
From enrollment to the 4-week follow-up appointment
Bleeding index
Time Frame: From enrollment to the 4-week follow-up appointment
The primary researcher will document the bleeding index for each patient prior to the intervention and during every follow-up appointment using Gingival Bleeding Index (GBI)
From enrollment to the 4-week follow-up appointment

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Lamis D. Rajab

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

January 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

March 1, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

April 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

December 14, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 14, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

December 29, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 6, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 29, 2026

Last Verified

April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • UJordanLamis3

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Pediatric Dentistry

Clinical Trials on Motivational interviewing oral hygiene instructions

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

CROs by country

CROs in Uzbekistan

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Subscribe