Article
Students’ attitudes towards
individuals with an
intellectual disability
Meera Patel
The University of Birmingham, UK
John Rose
Journal of Intellectual Disabilities
2014, Vol. 18(1) 90–103
ª The Author(s) 2013
Reprints and permission:
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DOI: 10.1177/1744629513511355
jid.sagepub.com
The University of Birmingham, UK
Date accepted: 09 October 2013
Abstract
The aim of the study was to investigate attitudes held by a British student population towards
individuals with an intellectual disability. Students participated in focus groups addressing their
attitudes, behaviours and perceptions of individuals with an intellectual disability. Thematic analysis
was the method used to identify emergent themes. Results identified five main themes in relation
to intellectual disabilities. The themes suggest that attitude scales fail to effectively measure the
multidimensional nature of British student’s attitudes towards intellectual disabilities. One out of
the five emergent attitude themes from the current study is sufficiently represented in measures of
attitudes towards intellectual disability. These results suggest a need to modify current attitude
scales or develop new ones to measure the British population’s attitudes towards intellectual
disabilities. A lack of knowledge about intellectual disabilities was also identified. Participants
recognized exposure through the media as a tool to increase knowledge.
Keywords
attitudes, intellectual disabilities, knowledge
Introduction
Since the development of concepts such as social role valorization (e.g. Thomas and Wolfensberger,
1999), the fundamental rights of people with intellectual disabilities to live as equal members of
society are now well established. These ideas have been translated into practice with the closure
Corresponding author:
John Rose, School of Psychology, The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, West Midlands B15 2TT, UK.
Email: [email protected]
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of congregate and institutional settings where many people with intellectual disabilities lived in
the past (Emerson and Hatton, 1994).
While there has been considerable practical progress in the inclusion of people with Intellectual
Disabilities (e.g. Rose, 2009), people with learning disabilities can still be subject to discrimination
and stigma (Jahoda and Markova, 2004). This can be overt through direct discrimination such as
bullying (Gillen, 2007); however, a number of recent reports have demonstrated broader discrimination in other areas such as the provision of health care; for example, recent reports suggest
that many deaths of people with intellectual disability are avoidable (Mencap, 2012). This evidence suggests there is still significant progress needed in changing the attitudes of many people in
the society towards people with intellectual disabilities, and having effective measures of attitude
are essential to monitor and evaluate change.
Attitudes held towards individuals with an intellectual disability can have wide-ranging effects
on the individual and may impact upon opportunities for employment, housing, health and education (Siperstein et al., 2003). The identification of attitudes towards those with an intellectual disability is important to identify potential prejudice and develop a baseline that can be used to
enhance relationships (McManus et al., 2011).
Strategies based around the rights, independence, choice and inclusion of those with an intellectual disability have been developed by the UK government, which aim to maximize the life
chances of those with an intellectual disability (Department of Health (DOH), 2001, 2009, 2010).
Research investigating society’s attitudes and behaviours towards those with an intellectual disability can help determine whether strategies successfully achieve their aims, when put into
practice.
Students’ attitudes have been assessed using the Community Living Attitudes Scale (CLAS)
(Henry et al., 1996a). The CLAS is used to measure attitudes towards intellectual disabilities,
consisting of four subscales including empowerment, exclusion, sheltering and similarity. The
CLAS was originally used to measure attitudes held by American students (Henry et al., 1996a).
The attitudes of the general public and students in Australia have been investigated (Yazbeck
et al., 2004) using the Mental Retardation Attitude Inventory (MRAI) (Antonak and Harth, 1994).
The scale has four main subscales: 1. The degree to which people with Intellectual Disabilities
should be integrated into society; 2. The degree to which people with Intellectual Disabilities
should associated with others in the classroom; 3. The degree to which the rights of people with an
intellectual disability should be upheld in the community; 4. Beliefs concerning the moral character and social behaviour of people with intellectual disabilities (Antonak and Harth, 1994). In
general, students and disability services groups held more positive attitudes than members of the
general population. Individuals with higher educational attainment, prior knowledge or regular
contact with someone with an intellectual disability gave the most positive responses. A link
between knowledge of intellectual disabilities and attitudes has been identified in British school
children. The Peer Attitudes Toward the Handicapped Scale (PATHS) (Laws and Kelly, 2005) was
used to explore attitudes and behavioural intentions. Children who read a description of a child
with Down’s syndrome held more positive attitudes and behavioural intentions towards this child,
in comparison with children who received no information.
Siperstein et al. (2007) administered a survey to five thousand students questioning their attitudes towards the inclusion of peers with an intellectual disability. Results indicated students had
limited contact with other students with an intellectual disability. Students believed individuals
with an intellectual disability can participate in non-academic classes, but not in academic classes,
and view inclusion as having both positive and negative effects (Siperstein et al., 2007). Research
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Journal of Intellectual Disabilities 18(1)
investigating attitudes, knowledge and behaviour towards those with an intellectual disability may
help the government achieve strategies aimed at improving the lives of those with an intellectual
disability.
The Attitudes Towards Intellectual Disability questionnaire (ATTID) (Morin et al., 2012) was
developed through the previously validated scales including the MRAI-revised (Antonak and
Harth, 1994) and CLAS (Henry et al., 1996a, 1996b). This scale measures the cognitive, affective
and behavioural components of attitudes towards intellectual disability and has been identified as
one of the few scales that measure the multidimensional nature of attitudes (Morin et al., 2012).
They suggest that the ATTID is a useful scale to measure attitudes amongst different cultures
as well as the Canadian population where it was originally developed.
It has been argued that attitudes have remained stable over time, due to the continual barriers to
social integration that those with an intellectual disability experience (McCaughey and Strohmer,
2005). However, with the introduction of policies focussing on community integration (DOH,
2001, 2009, 2010), it is important that attitudes are reassessed (Antonak and Harth, 2000). This
study aimed to explore attitudes held by a British student population. Through focus groups, we
explored existing attitudes and reviewed scales used to measure attitudes. Attitudes that are
identified, which have not been measured previously, can contribute to the development of attitude
scales to ensure the multidimensional nature of attitudes towards intellectual disability is
accounted for.
Method
Participants
Thirty undergraduate psychology students (27 female and 3 male, range ¼ 18 to 22 years, Mage ¼ 18.7
years) participated in one of the four focus groups. Participants were obtained through the university’s Research Participant Scheme and were given course credit in exchange for their time.
The study was subject to the normal procedures for ethical review of the University of Birmingham, UK; participation was voluntary and all participants were given an information sheet
about the project prior to participation and completed a consent form.
Development of focus group
Focus groups were chosen as the primary method for data collection due to the exploratory nature
of the study. Questions were worded to ensure they were as open and broad as possible, to
minimize suggestibility and generate new ideas. More specific themes were generated through
discussions with a clinician who worked with people with intellectual disabilities and by examining existing literature and attitude scales towards people with intellectual disabilities. Themes
that were identified were incorporated as prompts to encourage discussion.
To orient participants to what an intellectual disability was, a handout of the British Psychological Society’s (BPS) definition of a learning disability was used (BPS, 2000). This was used as a
starting point for the discussion, as it provided participants an understanding of the concept with
minimal subjective influence (compared to other methods such as video clips of individuals with
an intellectual disability describing their experience). It also gave participants a common language
and understanding of what was being discussed and ensured that individuals more clearly
understood the group who were the focus of discussion.
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Group process
The four focus groups were held at the university and were led by one researcher. All focus groups
lasted 1hour with the discussions lasting between 40 and 50 min. Each focus group had between six
and eight individuals.
The focus groups followed a preset structure. On arrival, participants read an information sheet
and were asked to complete a consent form. They then completed a questionnaire providing
demographic information, gave a written definition of what they believe an intellectual disability
to be and were asked to report the frequency of contact they had with someone with an intellectual
disability. Participants were then asked to read the BPS definition of a learning disability so they
had a common understanding of what an intellectual disability is. They were also asked at the
beginning of the focus group how the definition they read compared to their written definition of
what it was. It was assumed that psychology students may have an awareness of the BPS definition;
however, analysis of their written replies suggested their understanding was limited. Out of the 3
components in the BPS (2000) definition, only 1 person knew all of them, 4 recorded 2 elements,
20 recorded 1 element and 4 none.
The structure of the group was set beforehand to ensure there was some consistency between all
four focus groups. Probes were used in response to student’s answers to gain more detail where
appropriate.
Data analysis
The focus groups were recorded using a Dictaphone, and audio files were transcribed verbatim.
Thematic analysis was used based on Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-step method. Thematic analysis was used as it is a useful method for identifying broad themes across a qualitative data set.
Thematic analysis is fitting for the exploratory nature of the study and allowed scope for flexibility
in the analysis. The first step in the analysis was familiarization with the data through transcribing
audio files and rereading the transcripts. Familiarization with the data made the processes of generating codes and identifying themes more efficient, as relevant data became salient.
The generation of codes was data driven, through systematically reading the transcripts;
statements that were interesting and relevant to attitudes were highlighted and coded. All themes
were reviewed to ensure there was enough data to support them. Statements were labelled with the
initials of which participant and focus group they originated from. The labelling of statements
resulted in the omission of themes that were not represented by more than a few students’ attitudes
from different groups. Themes were labelled to concisely summarize the data, and sub-themes
were named where appropriate. For example, a clear differentiation emerged between the positive
and negative statements used to describe the caring experience so these sub-themes were labelled.
A second researcher reviewed the themes to improve reliability; after review, the themes were reexamined and confirmed by the original researcher and discussed further with the second
researcher when applicable.
Results
Descriptions of the attitude themes that emerged from thematic analysis are presented below, with
example quotations to represent the findings (Tables 1 and 2).
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Table 1. The five main attitude themes, sub-themes and sub-sub-themes.
Main Theme
Sub-theme
Sub-sub-theme
Confusion of what an ID is
Lack of awareness of the social effects of an
ID
IDs versus physical disabilities
Benefits of integrating
Benefits for society
The benefits of integrating
Benefits for the individual
individuals into communities
Negatives of integrating
The posed threat on society
have versus the negative
Consequences for the
consequences integrating an
individual
individual into society can have
Difficulties versus rewards of
The difficulties
caring for someone with an ID The rewards
Growing up and its effects on
attitudes towards those with
an ID
The medias influence on attitudes Inaccurate portrayal of people with IDs
towards individuals with an ID A positive source of information on IDs
The media as a tool of education about IDs
ID: intellectual disability.
Confusion of what an intellectual disability is
Participants perceived the concept of intellectual disabilities to represent restricted areas of
functioning and dismissed the impact on social relations and daily living. Students often stated
their perceptions of physical disabilities when asked about intellectual disabilities, for example,
when asked about their interactions with someone with an intellectual disability. Overall responses
indicated they had a greater awareness and exposure to physical disabilities compared to intellectual disabilities (Table 3).
The benefits of integrating individuals into communities have for society and the individual
with an intellectual disability versus negative consequences integrating an individual into
society can have
Benefits and potential negative consequences of integrating someone with an intellectual disability
into society were identified. The majority of participants believed it was important to take into
consideration the severity of the disability before deciding if they should be integrated within
communities. The consequences of integration were balanced between the benefits and threats it
may have, not only for society but the individual with the disability. Specifically, integration was
seen as an opportunity for those in society and individuals with the intellectual disability to learn
from each other. Some participants expressed a worry that integration may impair relations
between society and individuals with an intellectual disability (Table 4).
Difficulties versus rewards of caring for someone with an intellectual disability
Students identified how caring for an individual with an intellectual disability would be personally
rewarding, but they also recognised how the rewards of becoming a carer could be coupled with
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Table 2. Frequency of quotes for each theme and sub-theme.
Frequency of quotes in
relation to each theme
Themes and sub-themes
The benefits of integrating individuals into communities have
versus negative consequences merging an individual into society
can have
Benefits of integrating
Negatives of integrating
Difficulties versus rewards of caring for someone with an ID
The difficulties of caring for someone with an ID
The rewards
The medias influence on attitudes towards individuals with an ID
The medias inaccurate portrayal of people with IDs
A positive source of information on IDs
The media as a tool of education about IDs
Confusion of what an ID is
Lack of awareness of the social effects of an ID
- IDs versus physical disabilities
Growing up and its effects on attitudes towards those with an ID
16
12
4
11
9
2
10
4
2
4
8
5
3
8
ID: intellectual disability.
Table 3. Confusion around intellectual disability.
Lack of awareness of the social effects of an ID
IDs versus physical disabilities
‘I didn’t really think about the social side of it I more ‘everywhere you see people with physically disabilities
and slowly children are getting used to that idea it’s
just thought about like the umm the learning
ok if children are in a wheelchair or perhaps they
processes like more about intelligence and not
are missing an arm but they are not really exposed
about the social aspect of it’ (F2–K)
to people with learning disabilities’(F1–S)
‘I haven’t looked at anyone differently
‘I assumed mainly a biological cause like genetics I
you notice when people look physically differently
didn’t think about the social side of it which
due to their disability but I just think a different sort
surprised me when I read this because I didn’t
of person and that’s its’ (F3–E)
include that’ (F3–T)
ID: intellectual disability.
negative consequences. Statements used to describe caring experiences were centred on negative
beliefs of what caring would be like. For example, negative adjectives such as ‘shocking’ were
mentioned more frequently than the positive and rewarding aspects. Students who focused on the
negative aspects of caring based their attitudes on the hardships they had seen a family member
(who is a carer) experience. Twenty students had a relationship with someone with an intellectual
disability (who was not a family member) or did not have a relationship with someone with an
intellectual disability, but they still expressed an understanding of the difficulties being a carer can
have (Table 5).
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Table 4. Attitudes towards integration.
Benefits of merging
Negatives of merging
The posed threat on society:
‘there’s it’s all well and good to focus on their rights
to be in the society I don’t mean this to sound
derogatory but you know focus on their rights but
you have to think of everyone else’s protection
almost like is everyone else going to be safe around
them’
Consequences for the individual with an ID:
For the individual with an ID:
‘I think people would get put off’
‘if they are merged into our society they are more
likely to see kind of what is the normal way of
functioning normal social kind of situations’
For society:
‘it gives people who aren’t really that aware of
learning disabilities more of knowledge of umm
what these people go through’
ID: intellectual disability.
Table 5. Attitudes towards caring.
The difficulties of caring for someone
with an ID
The rewarding aspects of caring for someone
with an ID
‘quite rewarding to see that like your actually helping
‘you would get really annoyed’ (F4–A)
someone’ (F1–L)
‘you have to pretty much sacrifice all of your free time
and like maybe spending time with your friends and ‘It would be very challenging but umm yeh it’s really
rewarding as was said you probably could see the
your other children to solely care for them so it is
immediate impact that you helping has whereas
quite demanding’(F1–E)
maybe in another job your impact isn’t seen so
quickly or drastically . . . uplifted if you could see the
help you were doing in someone else’s life’ (F1–J)
ID: intellectual disability.
Growing up and its effects on attitudes towards those with an intellectual disability
Participants noted how their personal attitudes towards individuals with an intellectual disability
had changed from their childhood into adolescence. Their behaviour, thoughts and perceptions
became more positive as they grew older. Overall, they identified that the more mature they
became, the more empathetic and understanding they were towards individuals with an intellectual
disability (Table 6).
The media’s portrayal of intellectual disabilities
Student’s attitudes towards the media’s portrayal of intellectual disabilities varied. Some students
stated the media can be used as a tool to educate individuals on intellectual disabilities. Other
students believed the media does not accurately portray individuals with an intellectual disability.
In particular, the media fails to show the contribution those with a disability can make to society.
Other students stated television documentaries were a positive source of information, especially if
portrayed from the viewpoint of the individual with an intellectual disability. Overall, students
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Table 6. The impact of growing older.
Growing up and its effects on attitudes towards those with an ID
‘as you get older you start to see actually how harder ‘kids are quite ignorant because they don’t really
know much so it’s like once you get older its better
it is’ (F1–AM)
because you appreciate it and you get to know
‘yeah as you get older you become more mature and
more about it’ (F2–S)
you know you develop more empathy and like also
‘when you’re really young you just kind of don’t
you meet more people’ (F1–L)
recognise it up to a certain age but then past a
certain age when your teenagers that might be the
sort of age you start to notice and you’re like oh
wow and then you can be harsh towards people
like name calling and stuff’ (F2–K)
ID: intellectual disability.
Table 7. The impact of the media.
The inaccurate portrayal of
people with IDs
A positive source of information The media as a tool of education about
on IDs
IDs
‘documentaries are very hyped ‘I think it’s a good representation ‘I think there needs to be more media
attention educating people to what
. . . it’s not something the
up or they only show the
learning disabilities are like’ (F1–L)
media have made up’ (F2–H)
very extreme cases’ (F4–J)
ID: intellectual disability.
seemed to have been exposed more to intellectual disabilities through the media and interactions
with individuals with an intellectual disability, than through education in schools (Table 7).
A lack of knowledge about intellectual disabilities
In addition to the five attitude themes that emerged, a lack of knowledge about intellectual disabilities was also identified. Prior to the focus groups, participants were required to define what
they believed intellectual disabilities to be. Written definitions supported the statements that
emerged from focus groups, as student’s definitions either lacked accuracy or were very brief.
Definitions were categorized by the degree to which they met the BPS definition of an intellectual
disability. The majority of written responses matched the one criteria of the definition that states a
significant impairment of intellectual functioning and many replies ignored the significant
impairment of adaptive/social functioning. Only one of the student’s definitions met all three
criteria of the BPS definition (Table 8).
Students identified they had received little education about intellectual disabilities. Eleven
quotes were identified to support this finding (Table 9).
On completion of the study, students were sent an overview of the themes and asked for
feedback on the results and their experience of participating in a focus group; seven participants
replied. The students stated they believed the results were accurate and representative of their
attitudes. Participants also stated they were not familiar with the focus group setting that may have
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Table 8. The number of written definitions that match different criteria of the BPS definition.
Number of definitions that
match the BPS definition in
all three criteria
Number of definitions
that match the BPS definition in two criteria
Number of definitions
that match the BPS definition in one criteria
Number of definitions
that were different to
all three criteria
4
20
4
1
BPS: British Psychological Society.
Table 9. Education about intellectual disability.
Lack of knowledge about IDs
‘I don’t think we were taught anything about people ‘We didn’t do anything about it in school’ (F3–A)
with learning disabilities at school. Because there
was someone with a learning disability at school
and you could ask those questions but no one
actually told us anything’ (F2–C)
‘some sort of education in schools but I don’t know ‘I think through doing we studied Autism through
Psychology A-level broadened your understanding
whether people would pay that much attention to
because I didn’t really understand it before but yeah
it but I guess that’s better than nothing which is
that defiantly helped’ (F3–J)
what we have now so’ (F3–C)
ID: intellectual disability.
affected responses. Specifically, one student stated ‘It did take time for people to give answers at
times because they might have felt uncomfortable answering questions’.
Discussion
After reviewing the attitude themes, one of the five emergent themes appeared to be fully represented in current measures of attitudes towards intellectual disabilities. The CLAS, MRAI and
ATTID are scales commonly used in research concerning societies’ attitudes and comparisons
between items from these three scales and the themes that emerged from this study can help
determine whether such developments are required. The theme ‘The benefits integrating individuals into communities can have versus the negative consequences integrating individuals into
society can have’ is represented in all three scales. Subscales include items assessing attitudes
towards integration–segregation in the MRAI, exclusion in the CLAS and interactions in the
ATTID. For example, the MRAI includes an item, ‘Having people who are mentally retarded and
not mentally retarded work at the same jobsites will be beneficial to both’, this specifically assesses
attitudes towards the benefits integration can have for individuals with a disability and their
colleagues. This matches well with the finding that the students in this study believe integration has
benefits for the individuals with an intellectual disability and the community they are integrated
into. ‘The rewards versus difficulties of caring for someone with an intellectual disability’ is
partially represented in attitude scales. The ATTID includes items that are loosely associated with
caring, for example, examining whether someone would agree to supervise a child with an
intellectual disability. The importance of assessing attitudes to caring is crucial, as past research
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Figure 1. A diagram representing the extent to which the five attitude themes from the current study are
represented in existing scales used to measure attitudes towards ID.
ID: intellectual disability.
has identified links between negative attitudes and the inadequate health care received by those
with an intellectual disability (Gill et al., 2002; Stanley, 1998). In the future, students may take on
roles that involve providing care for someone with an intellectual disability. Supplementary items
to assess this theme in greater depth would be beneficial in understanding carer’s attitudes and
behaviours towards the individuals they care for and to ensure they receive the best possible care.
‘Confusion about intellectual disabilities’ and ‘The effects growing older can have on attitudes
towards those with an intellectual disability’ are not well represented in the CLAS, MRAI or
ATTID scales. These scales do not include items to assess attitudes towards the areas of functioning in individuals with an intellectual disability or the differences in attitudes towards physical
disabilities and intellectual disabilities (Figure 1). Students felt that at a younger age, they were less
empathetic towards individuals with an intellectual disability. Empathy has been identified to have
a positive influence on attitudes towards groups of stigmatized individuals (Sandhu and Rose,
2012). The identification of what makes individuals more empathetic at an older age may facilitate
attempts to provoke empathy in younger individuals in the hope negative attitudes are minimized
and relationships are enhanced. Attitudes towards physical disabilities versus intellectual disabilities and changes in attitudes over time are both important aspects to assess to understand
perceptions about intellectual disabilities in greater depth.
Ten quotes emerged in relation to ‘The media’s influence on intellectual disabilities’; yet, this
theme is not represented in attitude scales. Participants were directly asked about the media;
therefore, the high frequency of quotes in relation to these attitudes is unsurprising. An increased
amount of data representing a theme does not necessarily indicate it is more crucial (Braun and
Clark, 2006). The frequency of quotes, which emerged is not the point of interest but the interest
concerns the data that represents this theme. The modification of attitude scales to include items
that assess attitudes towards the media’s influence may be a useful way to determine whether the
media should be used to educate society about intellectual disabilities. Students stated media
coverage of the Paralympics in 2012 exposed and educated them about physical disabilities;
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therefore, media coverage could potentially be used to educate individuals on intellectual disabilities. A third of students stated they had no previous contact with someone with an intellectual
disability, which may be a factor contributing to their lack of knowledge about intellectual
disabilities.
Yazbeck et al. (2004) found prior contact and knowledge with someone with an intellectual
disability was associated with more positive attitudes. If the media provides an accurate representation of intellectual disabilities it can be used as a tool to expose and educate individuals who
have not been integrated with someone with an intellectual disability. After reviewing the attitudes
that emerged from this study alongside pre-existing attitude scales, it seems few measures of attitudes assess the full multidimensional nature of attitudes in the population studied here. This suggests a need to modify or develop new attitude scales so they are more representative of the British
population’s attitudes towards intellectual disabilities (Figure 2).
In addition to the attitude themes, a lack of knowledge about intellectual disabilities was identified
through the analysis of students’ definitions of an intellectual disability. A concern that also needs to
be addressed is whether respondents are filling out scales with an accurate understanding of what an
intellectual disability is. Respondents in this study had very patchy knowledge and participants in
other studies may be filling out attitude scales with an inaccurate idea about intellectual disabilities.
This raises concerns regarding the validity of attitude scales; one solution to this potential problem
would be to ask respondents to provide a definition of intellectual disability prior to completing
scales. This modification will help ensure only attitudes from respondents who have an accurate
understanding of what an intellectual disability is will be assessed.
The lack of representation of all of the areas identified here within existing scales may be due to
a number of factors. It could be that they were not identified in the development stage of previous
measures as the procedures used to generate items were not comprehensive or the issues may not
have been relevant to the groups sampled at that particular time. It could also be that some items
have been removed during the development of the scales; however, this was not clear in the work
that we reviewed. It seems important that these issues are considered in the future development of
scales of this type.
This was a small qualitative study and the majority of participants were female undergraduate
students. Clearly, the nature of the sample and the methodology means that the findings will not
necessarily be representative of the general population and as a result will not generalize. When
comparing the comments of men in transcripts to women, there were no obvious affects of gender;
however, this may not be the case if more men participated and the sample had been more broadly
based. Previous contact or whether someone had had experience of people with an intellectual
disability seemed to influence comments more than gender. However, with such a small sample
with a restricted age range, the experience that participants had was also necessarily limited.
Giving the participants the BPS (2000) definition at the start of the groups would have had a
significant impact on the results obtained and may have significantly biased the results or at least
led the participants; however, it seems likely that without that information, many participants
would not have been able to contribute effectively to the discussions. With qualitative projects,
there is always a danger that the themes that emerge simply reflect the questions of the interview
schedule and the prompts that were used. While this could have been the case for some of the
themes as they clearly confirm previous findings, new areas that were not included in the interview
schedule or prompts did emerge and these areas need more exploration and development in the
future. Replication with larger more broadly based samples of participants will be necessary to
confirm the results found here.
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Key
- Five main attitude
Confusion
of what an ID
is
themes.
- A lack of knowledge
- Confusion
about intellectual disabilities
supports lack of knowledge
and vice versa.
- Media and
integration as tools to
improve this lack of
knowledge individuals
have about intellectual
disabilities.
Integration may
reduce confusion
about intellectual
disabilities in
communities.
The medias
influence on
attitudes
towards
individuals
with an ID
A lack of
knowledge
about
intellectual
disabilities
Growing up
and its effects
on attitudes
towards those
with an ID
The benefits
and negative
consequences
integrating
individuals
with an ID into
society have
Difficulties
versus
rewards of
caring for
someone
with an ID
Integration may
reduce confusion about
intellectual disabilities in
communities.
Figure 2. A diagram representing the main attitude themes and lack of knowledge identified in the current
study and the connections linking them.
The primary researcher was also a psychology student, while I had an awareness that there is a
lack of understanding and knowledge about intellectual disability in the student population, they
were surprised by the extent to which some of the comments suggested that some participants’
knowledge was minimal. While attempting to remain detached from the process of analysis and
attempts were made to reduce this bias through supervision and consultation, it is perhaps inevitable that the personal beliefs and experience of the researchers will have influenced the emphasis
of certain themes and may have impacted upon the results presented here.
A survey in Britain carried out by Mencap (2008) found 73% of respondents had an inaccurate
understanding of the term ‘learning disability’. Five years later this inaccurate understanding still
appears to be prevalent in a modern British sample. As identified by Laws and Kelly’s (2005),
knowledge about intellectual disabilities affect attitudes towards these individuals. The importance
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of future investigations into the findings of this study is clear when taking into consideration the
personal viewpoint of those with an intellectual disability. These individuals have stated they
believe negative attitudes in the community are a barrier to their social inclusion and contribute to
stigmatization (Abbott and Mcconkey, 2006). It is society’s responsibility to ensure we take the
necessary steps to improve knowledge and attitudes towards those with an intellectual disability to
achieve the strategies set out by the government (DOH, 2001, 2009, 2010) and eliminate this
stigmatization.
Funding
This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit
sectors.
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