Exploring the role of non-formal training in an international youth mobility on young adult’s perception of appearance and dental aesthetics

OpenAlex İngilizce

BACKGROUND: Dental aesthetic concerns in young adults are shaped by sociocultural appearance pressures and media-derived ideals, yet education-based interventions targeting these upstream determinants have received limited attention in dentistry. This exploratory study examined whether a brief non-formal educational programme delivered within an Erasmus+ youth mobility context was associated with short-term changes in sociocultural appearance attitudes and the psychosocial impact of dental aesthetics. METHODS: A single-group, quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test design was used. Thirty-four young adults (aged 18-30; 23 from Türkiye, 11 from France) completed the Sociocultural Attitudes Toward Appearance Questionnaire-4 (SATAQ-4) and the Psychosocial Impact of Dental Aesthetics Questionnaire (PIDAQ) immediately before (T0) and immediately after (T1) a five-day programme integrating media literacy, body-positivity activities, and oral health education. Pre-post differences were tested using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests with Holm adjustment, with rank-biserial correlations as effect sizes. Internal consistency was estimated using Cronbach's α and McDonald's ω. Reporting followed the TREND and TIDieR guidelines. RESULTS: From T0 to T1, SATAQ-4 total scores decreased (r_rb = - 0.782, 95% CI [- 0.956, - 0.536]) and PIDAQ total scores decreased (r_rb = - 0.655, 95% CI [- 0.882, - 0.345]). All subscales showed changes in the direction anticipated by the study hypothesis, with reductions in negative PIDAQ domains and an increase in Dental Self-Confidence. All comparisons remained significant after Holm adjustment (p_Holm ≤ 0.008). Internal consistency was generally high, except for the SATAQ-4 Thin/Low Body Fat subscale at T1 (α = 0.62). CONCLUSIONS: Participation in the programme was associated with short-term shifts in self-reported appearance attitudes and dental-aesthetic outcomes. Findings should be considered preliminary and hypothesis-generating; the absence of a control group, immediate post-test timing, and use of self-report measures preclude causal inference. Controlled designs with longer-term follow-up are needed.