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Young Children's Attitudes Toward Peers with Intellectual Disabilities: Effect of the Type of School
Author(s) -
Georgiadi Maria,
Kalyva Efrosini,
Kourkoutas Elias,
Tsakiris Vlastaris
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.056
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1468-3148
pISSN - 1360-2322
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-3148.2012.00699.x
Subject(s) - intellectual disability , psychology , inclusion (mineral) , typically developing , developmental psychology , special education , pedagogy , social psychology , autism , psychiatry
Background This study explored typically developing children's attitudes towards peers with intellectual disabilities, with special reference to the type of school they attended. Materials and Methods Two hundred and fifty‐six G reek children aged 9–10 (135 in inclusive settings) completed a questionnaire and an adjective list by G ash ( European Journal of Special Needs Education 1993; 8 , 106) and drew a child with intellectual disabilities, commenting also on their drawings. Results Typically developing children expressed overall neutral attitudes towards peers with intellectual disabilities. Type of school differentiated their attitudes, with children from inclusive settings being more positive towards peers with intellectual disabilities and choosing less negative adjectives to describe them than children from non‐inclusive settings. Girls and students who expressed more positive social, emotional and overall attitudes towards students with intellectual disabilities chose more positive adjectives to describe a child with intellectual disabilities. It was also found that children from inclusive settings drew children with intellectual disabilities as more similar to a child with D own syndrome in comparison with children from non‐inclusive settings. Conclusions Effective inclusive practices should be promoted to foster social acceptance of students with intellectual disabilities.