Who Directs SA IADR Activity: Drivers or Passengers

Presentations at SA IADR annual meetings has halved since peak activity in 1988. Objectives: This study examined SA IADR activity by School to establish whether (a) research "drivers" or "passengers" determined the SA IADR presentation numbers/ Dental School; (b) research momentum was maintained once "drivers" were no longer active; (c) presentation patterns could explain the decline in presentations /School from 1988. Methods: All programme booklets from SA IADR meetings 1967-2004 were scrutinised. "Drivers" were co-authors with five or more citations over two or more years; all other SA IADR presenters were regarded as "passengers". "Drivers" were tracked through subsequent years and Pearson Correlation Coefficient (P<0.05) compared "driver" presentations with School presentations. Results: Total presentations at the SA IADR were 3259. Twenty four "drivers" were identified from the Dental Schools of Witwatersrand, Pretoria, Stellenbosch, Western Cape and Medunsa. Together "drivers" were co-authors of 1585 SA IADR presentations. Individual "drivers" are un/predictable in their annual contributions to SA IADR. No "driver" was statistically significantly correlated with their School SA IADR input although two individuals were at P=0.06. Research momentum was arrested when "drivers" left Schools, but recovered in some instances. No single factor appeared to influence reduced SA IADR participation. Conclusion: % "driver" outputs/School are substantial. Each Dental School has a different SA IADR dynamic. SA IADR activity is neither "driver" nor "passenger" directed but appears to rely on both individual member enthusiasm and overall School research ethos.