Requirements of Process-Oriented Integration of Soft Skills in Dentistry Basic Science Courses: A Qualitative Study

INTRODUCTION: University training for committed and specialized human resources is not provided only through specialized skills training; graduates in any field need high quality soft skills for fulfilling the requirements of the community, so the proper integration of such skills into the curriculum of that profession is essential. Given the significance of soft skills in the success and quality of dentistry and lack of attention to soft skills training in basic sciences courses, the present study aimed to identify the requirements of the process-oriented integration of soft skills training in basic sciences courses of dentistry. METHODS: The present qualitative study employed a semi-structured interviewing technique for data collection. The research population consisted of 39 basic sciences faculty members at Isfahan and Mazandaran Universities of Medical Sciences and education experts selected by a purposive sampling technique. The content analysis method was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: For the process-oriented integration of soft skills in basic sciences courses, the current study identified four central requirements: providing background conditions (provision of socio-cultural contexts in society; development of educational and evaluation platforms in pre-university courses), providing professionalism (development of professionalism in the doctoral course of basic medical sciences; improvement in the model of faculty members), providing conditions for changing the curriculum (modification of curriculum and objectives in the basic sciences courses in dentistry; development of the attitude and knowledge of basic science faculty members towards soft skills training), and providing conditions for university pedagogy (provision of interactive and communication conditions; benefitting from diverse and appropriate learning activities; development of faculty members’ pedagogical abilities). CONCLUSION: Medical sciences curriculum planners can integrate the soft skills of dentistry in the basic science courses of the field by providing the conditions for the identified requirements.