Background:

Student Scientific Societies are research experiences that allow the student to become familiar with the research process. Its impact on the formation of investigative competencies is debated.

Objective:

To analyze the influence that participation in a Student Scientific Society has on self-efficacy to conduct research in dental students.

Methods:

A longitudinal intervention study was designed with the participation of 28 members of the Scientific Society of Dental Students (Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima, Peru) who developed research activities (projects, seminars, courses and publications) in the summer of 2020. A survey was used to assess self-efficacy to conduct research before and after the activities. The measurements were evaluated through frequencies and mean differences.

Results:

The mean self-efficacy before participation in the Society was 3.25 ± 0.93, while at the end of the activities in the Scientific Society it was 4.72 ± 0.44 (p = 0.022). After participation, males presented a mean of 4.12 ± 0.44 (p = 0.001), while females a value of 4.25 ± 0.35 (p = 0.001), showing significant changes within each group, but not when comparing the scores between males and females (p = 0.452).

Conclusion:

It is concluded that the perceptions indicated an improvement in self-efficacy to carry out research, including the ability to use statistical software, information management and scientific publication.

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