Dental employers may have to approach hiring differently in order to improve staff recruitment, according to Barry Lyon, DDS.
Dr. Lyon, dental director for Main Street Children’s Dentistry and Orthodontics and Dental Care Alliance, recently spoke with Becker’s to discuss “ghosting,”one of the many challenges facing employers in the dental industry.
Editor’s note: This Q&A is part of a weekly series featuring Dr. Lyon focused on topics in the dental industry and DSO field. The views expressed are those of Dr. Lyon and do not necessarily reflect those of Main Street Children’s Dentistry and Orthodontics or Dental Care Alliance.
This response was lightly edited for clarity and length.
Dr. Barry Lyon:
Halloween may be over, but ghosts are still around.
Forty-four percent of candidates admit to ghosting employers, according to recent data. Several factors account for this. Most notably is the use of AI tools that allow recruiters to easily send mass job opening announcements thereby removing the personal touch that previously helped to cement relationships early in the employment process. Interestingly enough, 53% of candidates state they’ve been ghosted by employers.
Psychologists theorize the impulse to vanish may be “less about cruelty or indifference and more about survival,” according to a Jan. 5 Newsweek article. Clinical psychologist Charlie Heriot-Maitland, PhD, contends ghosting is a primitive human response that protects us from threats and danger. “From a survival perspective, ghosting is a trade-off,” he told Newsweek. “It brings short-term relief by reducing immediate stress or threat, but it does so by creating a longer-term harm. The nervous system prioritizes what feels safest now, even when that choice slowly undermines relationships over time.” This is an interesting theory especially when you consider Gen Z is the most likely generation to ghost a potential employer, according to NumberBarn.
Part of the reason employers continue to be ghosted lies in the hiring process itself. A major step to prevent being ghosted is developing an early relationship with the candidate and communicating transparently. If Dr. Heriot-Maitland is correct, this would help offset the threat response that provokes the candidate to disappear.
