'If I had a friend in a wheelchair': children's thoughts on disabilities.
The purpose of the present study was to examine what notions there are among ordinary preschool children and schoolchildren about physically handicapped children using wheelchairs. Forty-eight children-16 children of preschool age (half boys, half girls, aged around 6), 16 children in primary school class 2 (half boys, half girls, aged around 8) and 16 children in class 4 (half boys, half girls, aged around 8)-constituted the investigated group. The method used was a combination of drawings produced by the children themselves serving as a projective image, interview questions in connection with the drawings and a self-assessment scale, based on Osgood's semantic differential technique. The results showed that most children had favourable attitudes towards a child in a wheelchair. They were willing to include the disabled child in their games and recreational activities, and they considered that the disabled child would have many friends and a high self-esteem. However, they saw real obstacles for the disabled child both in play situations and in other environmental settings. No tangible differences between the sexes could be found; however, differences by age were present. The results were discussed with regard to earlier research and topics for further research are suggested.
Tamm
M
M
Boden University College of Health Sciences, Hedenbrovägen, Boden, Sweden. maare.tamm@nll.se
Prellwitz
M
M
D001290:Attitude; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D019988:Children with Disabilities; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D010988:Play and Playthings; D012649:Self Concept; D013548:Sweden