EFFECTS OF CONTACT ON CHILDRENS ATTITUDES TOWARD DISABILITY - A LONGITUDINAL-STUDY

A quasi-experimental study was conducted on temporal effects of interg roup contact on nondisabled (ND) children's attitudes toward disabilit y. Children from a mainstream primary school were involved in an integ ration program with children from a school for children with severe le arning disabilities (SLD)(3). Measures were administered 3 times over a period of 3 months to 26 integrating (experimental) and 24 nonintegr ating (control) children. Social orientations in the experimental grou p became significantly more positive over time, while the control grou p showed little change. The experimental and control children initiall y categorized on the basis of gender and disability; subsequently the strategies of the experimental children were more idiosyncratic while the control children still used the same two dimensions.