Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-mkpzs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-28T02:42:11.010Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Actual and perceived attitudes towards deafness

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

Adrian Furnham  and
Sarah Lane
Adrian Furnham*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University College London
Sarah Lane
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University College London
*
1Address for correspondence: Dr Adrian Furnham, Department of Psychology, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Synopsis

This study had two aims: first, to investigate the attitudes of deaf and hearing people towards deafness; and, secondly, to study the difference between how deaf people perceive the attitudes of hearing people towards deafness, and how hearing people perceive the attitudes of deaf people towards deafness. The results showed that the deaf had more negative attitudes towards deafness than the hearing. In addition, the deaf believed that hearing people have more negative attitudes to deafness than hearing people actually have. This lack of empathy between the two groups was discussed. The amount of contact with the deaf was found to be associated with more realistic and less stereotyped attitudes to the deaf. The results are discussed in the context of research on social interaction with disabled people.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 14 , Issue 2 , May 1984 , pp. 417 - 423
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1984

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Altman, B. (1981). Studies of attitudes toward the handicapped: the need for a new direction. Social Problems 28, 321–337.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Altshuler, K. & Baroff, G. (1963). Educational background and vocational employment. In Family and Mental Health Problems of Deaf Population (ed. Rainer, L. J.). Columbia University Press: New York.Google Scholar
Bell, A. (1962). Attitudes of selected rehabilitation workers and other hospital employees towards the physically disabled. Psychological Reports 10, 183–186.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bunting, C. (1981). Public Attitudes to Deafness. HMSO: London.Google Scholar
Furnham, A. & Gibbs, M. (1984). School children's attitude toward the handicapped. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. (In the Press.)Google Scholar
Furnham, A. & Pendred, J. (1983). Attitudes towards the mentally and physically disabled. British Journal of Medical Psychology 56, 179–187.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gaier, E., Linkowski, O. & Jacques, M. (1968). Contact as a variable in the perceptions of disability. Journal of Social Psychology 74, 117–126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Horowitz, L., Rees, S. & Horowitz, M. (1965). Attitudes towards deafness as a function of increasing maturity. Journal of Social Psychology 66, 331–336.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Humphrey, C., Gilholme-Herbst, K. & Fawgi, S. (1981). Some characteristics of the elderly hearing-impaired who do not present for rehabilitation. British Journal of Audiology 15, 25–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Linowski, D., Jaques, M. & Gaier, E. (1969). Reactions to disability: a thematic analysis. Journal of Social Psychology 77, 201–214.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meadow, K. (1969). Self-image, family climate and deafness. Social Forces 47, 428–438.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rodda, M. (1969). Social Adjustment of Deaf Adolescence. North Regional Association for Deaf, No. 3: Manchester.Google Scholar
Schein, J. (1968). The Deaf Community: Studies in the Social Psychology of Deafness. Gallandet College Press: Washington.Google Scholar
Schroedel, J. (ed.) (1978). Attitudes Towards Persons with Disabilities: A Compendium of Related Literature. Human Resources Centre: Albertson, NY.Google Scholar
Schroedel, J. & Schiff, W. (1972). Attitudes towards deafness among several deaf and hearing populations. Rehabilitation Psychology 19, 57–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seller, J. & Chipman, A. (1964). Factorial structure and correlates of the attitudes towards disabled persons scales. Educational and Psychological Measurement 24, 831–840.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shattuck, M. (1946). Segregation versus non-segregation of exceptional children. Exceptional Children 32, 443–450.Google Scholar
Thomas, A. & Gilholme-Herbst, K. (1980). Social and psychological implications of acquired deafness for adults of employment age. British Journal of Audiology 14, 76–85.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Weir, S. (1981). Our image of the disabled and how ready we are to help. New Society 1, 7–10.Google Scholar
Yuker, H., Block, J. & Campbell, W. (1960). A Scale to Measure Attitudes Towards Disabled Persons. Human Resources Center: Albertson, NY.Google Scholar