Exploring Predictors of Social Actions by General Education Students towards Peers with Disabilities

Abstract

This study deepens the field’s understanding about factors that contribute to positive social engagement between students without disabilities and their peers with mild disabilities in general education classrooms. A sample of 68 seventh grade students with and without disabilities was drawn from general education classrooms in a suburban, Midwest district in the United States. Direct observation of students’ social behavior, as well as student surveys and context measures, were used to explore associations among student attitudes, their perceived norms, feelings of efficacy, stated intentions and their actions towards peers with disabilities. Results revealed that students without disabilities strong intentions to interact with peers with disabilities were unrelated to their actual behavior. However, students’ attitudes, norms, and feelings of efficacy were predictive of their intentions. Interpretations and implications for understanding the interplay of predisposing factors, intentions to socialize, and actual socializing behavior are discussed.