ERIC Number: EJ1158416
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1925-0746
EISSN: N/A
Imagined Contact Improves Intentions towards a Hypothetical Peer with Asperger Syndrome but Not Attitudes towards Peers with Asperger Syndrome in General
Fleva, Eleni
World Journal of Education, v5 n1 p1-12 2015
The aim of this study is twofold. First, to investigate whether the imagined contact method (an indirect method of contact) can improve behavioural intentions towards a hypothetical peer with Asperger syndrome (AS). Second, to test whether the effect of the method can be generalised on attitudes towards young people with AS in general. Participants were 416 young adolescents (M age = 15.2) who view a power-point presentation introducing a hypothetical male target with AS. A voice-over provided either descriptive or combined (descriptive plus explanatory) information about AS. Next, imagined contact participants were asked to imagine an encounter with the target boy while control participants were asked to simple think about him. Behavioural intentions towards the target were assessed by the Shared Activities Questionnaire while attitudes towards young people with AS in general were assessed by the Asperger Syndrome Questionnaire, a self-generated instrument. Results revealed that imagined contact compared to control participants exhibited greater behavioural intentions towards the target. However, no effect of the imagined contact method was observed on attitudes towards young people with AS in general. Combined information about AS had only a moderate effect. Implications and study limitations are discussed.
Descriptors: Asperger Syndrome, Intention, Control Groups, Experimental Groups, Attitudes toward Disabilities, Attitude Change, Adolescent Attitudes, Vignettes, Interaction Process Analysis, Questionnaires, Imagination, Modeling (Psychology), Intergroup Relations, Intervention, Behavior Modification, Preferences, Secondary School Students, Foreign Countries, Statistical Analysis, Gender Differences
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Greece (Athens)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A