Perceptions of Mentally Retarded Persons.

Three hundred and seventy-three college students compared "mentally retarded" and "normal" persons on eighteen diverse personality-trait characteristics. Three factors were found to underlie the students' perceptions, with mentally retarded persons being perceived more favorably than normal persons on traits indicative of amiability, less favorably on traits reflective of cognitive / mental competencies, and differing on those traits suggestive of social / self control. None of the student variables (e.g., age, sex, level of exposure, characterizations of mentally retarded persons, etc.) were found to have a major impact on these perceptions. Various explanationsfor this apparent stability in people's perceptions of meyitally retarded persons are outlined. In recent years there has been growing interfrequent contact with them. The charac est in the attitudes and perceptions that the teristics which disabled and nondisabled public holds regarding mentally retarded people share will begin to overshadow the persons. Much of this interest appears to stem differences which set them apart from each from the belief that these attitudes and perother, (p. 252) ceptions are major determinants of how the . , . , , . , . ,, . Given the popularity and philanthropic ap public treats mentally retarded persons . , • . ■ (Gottlieb 1975) peal which these assumptions appear to pos ,, . , , ,. c. sess, it would be expected that each of these Consistent with this basic belief has been . , , , . c , r , . assumptions have been thoroughly substan the development of a number of somewhat . , • m ■ n . , tiated in research and programmatic efforts, more specihc assumptions concerning the na. , . F i „ . r.u ui' . »•. a This, however, is not the case, ture and malleability of the public s attitudes , ■ ,. i, j j Illustrative of the current lack of evidence and perceptions regarding mentally retarded . T c . , . , for these assumptions are studies which have persons. Two of these which appear to have . „ , . , . u . u investigated the public s overall attitudes to gained widespread acceptance are that the , 6 1 , , ,. ur . , . ward mentally retarded persons. Such studies public s attitudes and perceptions regarding . , • . • i, have recurrently obtained inconsistent or mentally retarded persons have historically . ' r , , , , i , even conflicting results. Gottwald (1970), tor been and continue to be overwhelmingly ° . example, reported generally negative atti negative, and that these attitudes and percep, . • . • , . , tudes toward mentally retarded persons, with tions become increasingly positive as people . 7 , . , , , . i , 'jr respondents rating mentally retarded persons become more knowledgeable about and far . ,r^ i • , ,,o. more negatively than normal Piersons on every miliar with these persons (Guskin, 1981). f . 7 ,. v . „ , , , , , one of the sixteen adiective-pairs used in the Taken together, these assumptions have led , J. , r ,. , , > . study. In contrast, using the same list of ad many to conclude that greater public expo. / . 0 , . i , , . iective-pairs, Gottlieb and Corman (1975) sure to mentally retarded persons leads almost J_ , \ , . *. , , found that many people exhibit a distinctly invariably to more positive views and behavior . ,, . ■ . „ , positive stereotype regarding various per toward these persons, for example, McGord ' ,. , r „ , , (1982) states' sonality attributes of mentally retarded per sons. In apparent deference to the dominant In natural settings, human service workers assumptions regarding the public's negative and the public-at-large will have the opporattitudes toward mentally retarded persons, tunities to learn that most people with imhowever, these authors treated this positive pairments can be productive members of stereotype as an anomaly which warranted a society in a utilitarian sense (e.g., working, strong disclaimer: paying taxes), and that regardless of their abilities to perform "useful" tasks, they ofFactor 1 (Positive Stereotype), which in ten become a genuine source of joy and fuleludes items describing mentally retarded fillment for people who live, work, and have children as moral, honest, and kind, may