Improving attitudes towards children with disabilities in a school context: a cluster randomized intervention study

Aim  Although inclusive education of disabled children is now an accepted practice, it is often challenged by negative peer attitudes. We undertook an interventional study aimed at improving students’ attitudes towards their disabled peers. Method  The participants were students from the 7th grade o...

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Published in:Developmental medicine and child neurology 2010-10, Vol.52 (10), p.e236-e242
Main Authors: GODEAU, EMMANUELLE, VIGNES, CÉLINE, SENTENAC, MARIANE, EHLINGER, VIRGINIE, NAVARRO, FÉLIX, GRANDJEAN, HÉLÈNE, ARNAUD, CATHERINE
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Affect
Attitude Change
Attitudes toward Disabilities
Child
Cluster Analysis
Cognition
Control Groups
Disabilities
Disabled Children
Early Adolescents
Female
France
Grade 7
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Inclusive Schools
Intervention
Male
Peer Group
Program Effectiveness
Quality of Life
Questionnaires
Schools
Social Behavior
Social Environment
Social Support
Socioeconomic Factors
Student Attitudes
Students - psychology
Surveys and Questionnaires
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Summary:Aim  Although inclusive education of disabled children is now an accepted practice, it is often challenged by negative peer attitudes. We undertook an interventional study aimed at improving students’ attitudes towards their disabled peers. Method  The participants were students from the 7th grade of twelve paired schools (1509 students from 62 classes; age 12–13y), randomly allocated to an intervention group (205 males, 285 females) or a control group (132 males, 165 females). The intervention consisted of a mandatory comprehensive educational project on disability. The Chedoke‐McMaster Attitudes Towards Children with Handicaps Scale (CATCH) was used to assess children’s attitudes before (T0) and after (T1) intervention. The hierarchical structure of the data was taken into account by adjusting standard deviations and using linear multilevel models. Results  Seven hundred and eighty‐four students had at least one score on the three domains (cognitive, affective, behavioural) of the CATCH at T0 and T1. The final scores were higher than baseline scores (total scores, intervention group: baseline score 25.6 (SD=5.4), final score 26.8 (5.9), p
ISSN:0012-1622
1469-8749
DOI:10.1111/j.1469-8749.2010.03731.x