Exploring the UWEC Campus Climate Surrounding DisabilitiesKatie Becka, Amanda Marxb, Melanie Niquettec, Alison Prahlc, and Kellie Risberga

Faculty Mentor: Mary Beth Leibhamc, Ph.D.University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire

aDepartment of Communication Sciences and DisordersbDepartment of Special Education

cDepartment of Psychology

BackgroundAn increasing aspect of diversity in higher education is disability with roughly 11% of all students enrolled in college having some type of disability. In order for students with disabilities to be successful in postsecondary education, an environment in which they feel supported, accepted, and fully integrated into the campus community is necessary. Unfortunately, students with disabilities often report feeling uncomfortable self-disclosing their disabilities on campus, fearing that others will have negative reactions to them (Baker, Boland, & Nowik, 2012). Further, there is evidence that students with disabilities are impacted by disability stigma in that they are subjected to negative stereotypes associated with disability, inaccurate assessments of their academic ability, and inappropriate judgments by peers (Trammell, 2009).

The purpose of this study was to examine college students’ attitudes toward disability and their perceptions of their campus engagement and satisfaction. By assessing students' attitudes toward disability and their perceptions of campus engagement, we hope to gain a better understanding of the current campus climate as it relates to disability and whether or not students with disabilities are indeed at risk of being impacted by disability stigma. The specific research questions for this study were:

1. Do students with and without disabilities have different attitudes towards disability?

2. Do students with and without disabilities report different levels of disability stigma?

3. Do students with and without disabilities report different levels of campus engagement/satisfaction?

MethodsParticipants:A total of 190 UWEC students (148 females; 62 freshmen, 33 sophomores, 27 juniors, 68 seniors) participated in this study.

Majors: The most commonly reported major was Psychology (n = 49), followed by Communication Sciences and Disorders (n = 19), Business (n = 19), and Communication & Journalism (n = 18). The remaining participants represented a variety of other majors (e.g., biology, history, education, social work).

Disability Status: 36 students reported having a disability. The most commonly reported disability was psychological/psychiatric disorder (n = 18), followed by ADHD (n = 13), and chronic health condition (n = 8).

Materials:Disability attitudes were measured using the 20-item Counseling Clients with Disabilities Survey (CCDS; Strike 2001). Disability stigma was measured using the Attitudes Toward Disabled Persons Survey (ADTP; Yuker, Block, & Young, 1970). Accommodations stigma was assessed by four items taken from the Attitudes Toward Requesting Accommodations measure (ATRA; Barnard-Brak, Sulak, Tate, & Lechtenberger, 2010). Campus engagement and experience was measured using a 9-item subscale from the Diverse Learning Environments Survey (DLE; Higher Education Research Institute, 2014). All items were rated on a 7-point Likert-scale with ‘1’ referring to “strongly disagree” and ‘7’ referring to “strongly agree.”

Procedure:Participants were recruited through email or through the Psychology Department SONA system and the survey was completed via an online survey program (Qualtrics).

Disability Stigma:Students w/ Disabilities vs. Students w/o Disabilities

Disability Attitudes:• Overall, students reported positive attitudes towards

disabilities. • Students with disabilities were significantly more likely to be

satisfied with their level of disability awareness and were also more likely to examine their own stereotypes about disabilities compared to their peers w/o disabilities.

• Students w/o disabilities reported significantly more difficulty in understanding how having a disability could be a source of pride compared to their peers with disabilities.

 Disability Stigma: • Overall, students reported low to moderate levels of disability

stigma. • Students w/o disabilities were significantly more likely than

their peers with disabilities to believe that people with disabilities are grouchy and are more easily upset than people w/o disabilities.

• Students w/o disabilities were significantly more likely than their peers with disabilities to believe that people with disabilities should live and work in special communities and one should not expect much from people with disabilities.

 Accommodations Stigma:• Overall, participants reported relatively low levels of stigma

towards accommodations, although students w/o disabilities reported significantly higher levels of stigma towards accommodations than their peers with disabilities.

Campus Experience/Satisfaction:• Students w/o disabilities were more likely than their peers

with disabilities to recommend this university to others and to report a sense of belonging on campus.

Conclusions

Disability Attitudes: Students w/ Disabilities vs. Students w/o Disabilities

Accommodations Stigma:Students w/ Disabilities vs. Students w/o Disabilities

References

We wish to thank the UWEC Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP) for their continued support of faculty-student research and Learning and Technology Services (LTS) for printing this poster. We also want to thank Vicky Thomas, the Director of the Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD), for distributing our survey to those students who are registered with her office.

Campus Experience/Satisfaction: Students w/ Disabilities vs.

Students w/o Disabilities

Overall campus ex-

perience score

Faculty be-lieve in my potential to succeed.

I feel a sense of belonging on this cam-

pus.

I would rec-ommend this university to

others.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7 Students w/ Disabilties Students w/o Disabilities

**

Overall attitude score

I have thought about how a

disability would affect my col-lege experi-

ence.

I feel satisfied about my level

of disability awareness.

I try to exam-ine my stereo-

types about various dis-

abilites.

I consider people with

disabilities to be a minority

group.

If I had a dif-ferent disability status than my peers, it would impair our rela-

tionship.

It is difficult for me to under-

stand how hav-ing a disability

could be a source of

pride.

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

5.5

6

6.5

7 Students w/ Disabilities Students w/o Disabilities

** **

**

**

**

**

Mea

n A

ttitu

de S

core

(7-p

t. sc

ale)

Mea

n A

gree

men

t Sco

re (7

-pt.

scal

e)

**

Mea

n A

ccom

mod

atio

n S

core

(7-p

t. sc

ale)

• Baker, K. Q., Boland, K. & Nowik, C. M. (2009). A campus survey of faculty and student perceptions of persons with disabilities. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 25, 309-329.

• Barnard-Brak, L., Sulak, T., Tate, A., & Lechtenberger, D. (2010). Measuring college students’ attitudes toward requesting accommodations: A national multi-institutional study. Assessment for Effective Intervention, 35, 141-147.

• Higher Education Research Institute (2014). 2015 Diverse Learning Environments Core Survey Instrument. Retrieved from http://www.heri.ucla.edu/dleoverview.php.

• Strike, D. L. (2001). Counseling Clients With Disabilities Survey. Unpublishedmanuscript.

• Trammell, J. (2009). Postsecondary students and disability stigma: Development of the Postsecondary Student Survey of Disability-Related Stigma (PSSDS). Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 22, 106-116.

• Yuker, H. E., Block, J. R., & Young, J. H. (1970). The measurement of attitudes towards disabled persons. Albertson, New York: Insurance Company of North America. Retrieved from http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED044853.pdf.

**p < .01

** p < .001

**p < .001 ** p < .01

Overall stigma score

It would be best for people with disabilities

to live and work in special communities.

It is almost im-possible for a person with a

disability to live a normal life.

You should not expect too much from people with disabilities.

People with disabilities are

more easily upset than people w/o disabilities.

You have to be careful what

you say around people with disabili-

ties.

People with disabilities are often grouchy.

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

5.5

6

6.5

7 Students w/ Disabilities Students w/o Disabilities

**

**

**

**

**** **

Mea

n S

tigm

a S

core

(7-p

t. sc

ale)

Overall accommodation stigma score

Accommodations are un-fair.

Accommodations are for lazy students.

Students should try to get along w/o accomoda-

tions.

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

5.5

6

6.5

7Students w/ Disabilities Students w/o Disabilities

** ****

**

**