ERIC Number: ED380929
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1994-Jul
Pages: 38
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Perceptions of Campus Climate for Students with Disabilities.
Denny, George S.; Carson, Ellen K.
Forty-one college students with disabilities were surveyed to obtain their perceptions of how other students, faculty, and staff view them and to collect data about the accessibility of the university campus. A majority of the students surveyed believed that others viewed them as capable. Approximately one-fourth felt that others responded to them in a supportive manner, and one-half believed that others responded as if the disability did not matter. An 11-statement scale (the Positive Social Attitude Scale) was developed to measure subjects' perceptions of other students' interaction with students with disabilities. The scale identified social behavior as the strongest factor in explaining variance. Subjects who had a more positive perception of others perceived less resentment from others. Subjects' comments from an open-ended section of the survey questionnaire are presented, focusing on recommendations to encourage acceptance and increase social contact for students with disabilities. Recommendations include faculty modeling of positive behavior in interacting with students with disabilities and increased use of cooperative work in classrooms. Decreasing physical barriers is also believed to increase social interaction by improving access to university-sponsored events (via bus service expansion, for example). (JDD)
Descriptors: Accessibility (for Disabled), Attitudes toward Disabilities, College Students, Disabilities, Educational Environment, Higher Education, Interaction, Peer Acceptance, Peer Relationship, Perception, Physical Mobility, Social Attitudes, Social Behavior, Social Integration, Student Attitudes, Student Personnel Services, Teacher Attitudes
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Arkansas Univ., Fayetteville. Dept. of Educational Leadership, Counseling, and Foundations.
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Funding also received from the Office for Campus Access at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.