Research Roadmap

The publication queue.

Scoped publications, methodology approach, and expected publication windows. Refreshed quarterly. Delays and cancellations are recorded in-line.

Research Roadmap#

Edition: PPR-ROADMAP-2026-V1 Published: 2026-04-29 Editorial Team: Forthcoming Suggested Citation: Private Practice Research. Research Roadmap. Edition PPR-ROADMAP-2026-V1. 2026.

About this Roadmap#

The Research Roadmap lists the publications Private Practice Research has scoped, the methodology approach for each, and the expected publication window. Entries are listed in approximate publication order and are revised as data availability, methodology readiness, or industry priority warrants. Publication queue refreshes quarterly; topics may shift based on data availability or industry priority.

The institute treats the Roadmap as a commitment to readers and citing parties. Where a scheduled publication is delayed, the cause is recorded on this page and the revised target is published before the original target lapses. Where a scheduled publication is cancelled, the cancellation is recorded with the reasoning and the slot is reassigned to the next-priority research question.

Q2 2026: Baseline Report v1#

Working title: Dental Practice Valuation Baseline 2026: Regional Multiples, Specialty Variation, and the Independent-Practice Transition Window Expected publication window: Q2 2026 (current cycle) Edition target: PPR-BASELINE-2026-V1 Status: In editorial review

Methodology summary. Baseline Report v1 consolidates the publicly available evidence on dental practice valuation in the United States across three input classes: ADA Health Policy Institute Survey of Dental Practice data on operating economics, BizBuySell and broker-published aggregates on transaction comparables, and ADA workforce statistics on demographic and regulatory context. Findings are presented as regional valuation distributions, multiples by specialty, and a hygiene-production / value correlation, with an 80 percent confidence band shown wherever sample size permits. Every key number is footnoted to its primary source. The report carries an explicit disconfirmation section identifying what evidence would refute the central findings, and a limitations section quantifying the self-reported-listing-data adjustment factor applied to transaction-comparable inputs.

Q3 2026: Methodology Critique on Broker Valuation Multiples#

Working title: Broker Valuation Multiples: A Methodology Audit of the Public Aggregates Expected publication window: Q3 2026 Status: Scoping

Methodology summary. This publication audits the methodology disclosed by the major dental transition advisory firms whose published valuation multiples are routinely cited in trade press and practitioner-facing material. The audit catalogues each firm's stated input population, sample-size disclosures, exclusion criteria, time-window definitions, and treatment of self-reported versus verified closing prices. The objective is a like-for-like comparison of methodology rigor, surfaced as a methodology-disclosure index that lets practitioners and scholars assess which aggregates are central to which research questions. The audit treats methodology disclosure as a public good and does not rank firms on commercial dimensions outside the disclosure scope.

Working title: The Independent-Practice Share of US Dental Care: A 36-Month Longitudinal View Expected publication window: Q3 2026 Status: Data assembly

Methodology summary. The brief tracks the share of US dental care delivered through independent (non-DSO-affiliated) practices across a rolling 36-month window using ADA workforce data, ADA HPI practice-organization breakdowns, and DSO-reported acquisition counts where publicly available. Findings are presented as national share, regional concentrations, and specialty-level variation, with explicit treatment of the definitional ambiguities in DSO classification. The brief flags the time-horizon limitation per the institute's standard limitations disclosure: 36 months is the current longitudinal window for the institute's transaction-comparable dataset.

Q4 2026: Brief PPR-5 (topic in development)#

Working title: Brief PPR-5 (working title pending) Expected publication window: Q4 2026 Status: Topic in development pending SEO research input

Methodology summary. This slot is reserved for a Q4 brief whose topic and content structure are pending input from a search-economics consultation that informs how the institute prioritizes practitioner-facing research questions for this publication cycle. The methodology approach will be drawn from the standard Private Practice Research toolkit: documented data sources, primary-source verification, named editorial review, disconfirmation discipline, and explicit limitations disclosure. The topic and the principal data sources are recorded here once locked, and this entry is updated to a working title with a methodology summary at that point.

Q4 2026: Brief PPR-6 (topic in development)#

Working title: Brief PPR-6 (working title pending) Expected publication window: Q4 2026 Status: Topic in development pending SEO research input

Methodology summary. This slot is reserved for a second Q4 brief, paired with the entry above, whose topic and content structure are pending the same search-economics consultation. The institute pairs the two Q4 briefs to permit a methodology approach that surfaces a comparison or contrast between two adjacent research questions, with a shared evidence base and per-brief findings. The topic, the principal data sources, and the comparative frame are recorded here once locked.

Q1 2027: Regional Deep Dive (slot reserved)#

Working title: Regional Deep Dive: Valuation, Transition Timing, and Workforce Composition in a Single Census Region Expected publication window: Q1 2027 Status: Slot reserved; region selection pending Baseline Report v1 findings

Methodology summary. A deep-dive analysis of one US census region whose Baseline Report v1 findings warrant fuller treatment, with state-level resolution where ADA HPI and workforce data permit. The deep dive applies the institute's standard methodology toolkit at a finer geographic resolution and is paired with an explicit external-validity caveat: a single-region analysis does not generalize to other regions, and the institute states this directly in the publication.

How the Roadmap is Maintained#

The Roadmap is reviewed at the start of every publication cycle. Reviews consider:

Data availability for each scheduled publication
Methodology readiness, including any open questions flagged by the editorial team or Advisory Board
External developments that change the research priority of a scheduled topic
Reader and citing-party signals on which research questions are most underserved

Substantive changes to the Roadmap are recorded with the reasoning, and the edition identifier on this page is incremented at each revision.

Versioning#

The current edition is PPR-ROADMAP-2026-V1, published 2026-04-29.

Contact#

Suggestions for future Roadmap entries, particularly from researchers, scholars, and practitioners working on adjacent questions, are welcome at editorial@privatepracticeresearch.org. The institute considers Roadmap suggestions a valuable input to the editorial program and replies to substantive proposals within 14 days.