Comparison of able-bodied and spinal cord injured individuals' appraisals of disability

Abstract

Study design: Survey. Objectives: Compare views of disability in able-bodied and spinal cord-injured individuals. Setting: United States. Methods: A group of able-bodied individuals were asked to imagine that they had sustained a spinal cord injury (SCI), then complete the Appraisals of DisAbility: Primary and Secondary Scale (ADAPSS) as if they were injured. The mean scores of able-bodied individuals on each of the six Subscales was compared with the mean scores of real spinal cord-injured individuals using t-tests of independent means. Results: Responses of able-bodied individuals was significantly different from real SCI individuals on five of the six Subscales of the ADAPSS. Conclusion: Able-bodied individuals' appraisals of disability after imagined SCI are much more negative than the actual appraisals of disability in real spinal cord-injured individuals. © 2013 International Spinal Cord Society All rights reserved.