Faculty Mentor(s)

Dr. Kristian Veit

Project Type

Student Scholarship

Scholarship Domain(s)

Scholarship of Discovery

Presentation Type

Presentation

Abstract

Presentation Location: Weber Center, Room 101

Abstract

Disability advocacy agencies have been pushing for more community integrated employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID). This study’s aim was to investigate attitudes toward individuals with ID working in the public workplace. A sample of 131 undergraduate students at Olivet Nazarene University were randomly assigned to read one of two different scenarios. One scenario depicted an individual as the co-worker of someone with ID. The other scenario depicted an individual as a customer being helped by someone with ID. Participants then completed the Multidimensional Attitudes Scale Toward Persons With Disabilities (Findler, Vilchinsky, & Werner, 2007) to assess possible affective, cognitive, and behavioral responses to the scenario they were given. Participants also completed the Social Distance sub-scale of the Multidimensional Attitude Survey on Mental Retardation (Ouellette-Kuntz, Burge, Brown, & Arsenault, 2010) to assess the level of contact they would be willing to have with someone with ID. Results showed that attitudes toward individuals with ID working in the public workplace did not differ depending on the context of contact. While overall attitudestoward individuals with ID were moderately positive, those who had more positive attitudes toward people with ID working in the public workplace were more likely to be willing to have closer contact with an individual with ID.

Permission Type

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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Apr 16th, 6:10 PM Apr 16th, 6:30 PM

Attitudes toward persons with intellectual disabilities in the public workplace.

Other

Presentation Location: Weber Center, Room 101

Abstract

Disability advocacy agencies have been pushing for more community integrated employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID). This study’s aim was to investigate attitudes toward individuals with ID working in the public workplace. A sample of 131 undergraduate students at Olivet Nazarene University were randomly assigned to read one of two different scenarios. One scenario depicted an individual as the co-worker of someone with ID. The other scenario depicted an individual as a customer being helped by someone with ID. Participants then completed the Multidimensional Attitudes Scale Toward Persons With Disabilities (Findler, Vilchinsky, & Werner, 2007) to assess possible affective, cognitive, and behavioral responses to the scenario they were given. Participants also completed the Social Distance sub-scale of the Multidimensional Attitude Survey on Mental Retardation (Ouellette-Kuntz, Burge, Brown, & Arsenault, 2010) to assess the level of contact they would be willing to have with someone with ID. Results showed that attitudes toward individuals with ID working in the public workplace did not differ depending on the context of contact. While overall attitudestoward individuals with ID were moderately positive, those who had more positive attitudes toward people with ID working in the public workplace were more likely to be willing to have closer contact with an individual with ID.