Tierza Loskota Kerry Kleyman, Ph.d.

1. The Influence of Experience and SOcial Dominance Orientation on Reduction of Prejudice Towards People with Physical Disabilities • Tierza Loskota • Kerry Kleyman, Ph.d.

2. Introduction • The problem of stigmatization and exclusion towards people with disabilities on employment opportunities • The purpose of the current study

3. Intergroup contact theory • Allport’s (1954) four optimal conditions • Meta-analytic review of 515 studies demonstrate empirical support of intergroup contact theory (Pettigrew and Tropp, 2001)

4. Social DominanceTheory • Social dominance orientation (Pratto et al., 1994) • Social forces that exert an influence on SDO

5. Attitudes • Three types of attitude responses: beliefs, affect, and cognition • Behavior can shape attitudes • Attitudes can shape behavior

6. Attitudes towards people with disabilities • Attitudes and socialization towards people with disabilities begins as early as age 5 • Attitudes of employers versus consumers

7. The current study • Hypothesis 1: Pleasant or unpleasant experiences with people that have physical disabilities will predict current attitudes towards people with physical disabilities • Hypothesis 2: The participant’s individual difference variable of SDO will moderate the relationship between experience and current attitudes towards people with physical disabilities

8. Method • 143 participants: 75% female, 32% of participants had no experience with people that had disabilities, and the average age was 38 (SD=14) • Instruments: • 1. Empowerment and Exclusion subscales of Community Living Attitudes scale • 2. Integration-Segregation, Social Distance, and Subtle Derogatory Beliefs subscales of the MRAI

9. Method Continued • 3. Marlowe-Crowne social desirability scale-short form • 4. Social dominance orientation scale • 5. Previous experience with people that have physical disabilities and demographics inventory

10. Results • A Factor Analysis Found That The Internal Reliabilities Are: • 1. Social dominance orientation α = .830 • 2. MRAI Integration-Segregation α = .724 • 3. MRAI Social Distance α = .653 • 4. MRAI Subtle Derogatory Beliefs α = .751 • 5. CLA Empowerment α = .778 • 6. CLA Exclusion α = .784

11. Results • A MANCOVA was run to test the relationship between SDO and previous experience with people that have physical disabilities, while controlling for the covariates of gender and age • Main effects were found for SDO on all five attitudes subscales • Main effects were also found for previous experience on all five attitude subscales

12. Results • An interaction was also found between previous experience, and SDO, on attitudes towards social distance • F(1,122) = 4.754, p < .05, η² = .038.

13. Figure 1 • Main Effect: Experience and Attitudes

14. Figure 2 • Main Effect: SDO and Attitudes

15. Figure 3: Social Distance Attitudes • Interaction between SDO and Experience on Social Distance Attitudes

16. Discussion • Implications: Importance of the four optimal conditions of intergroup contact theory and support for the influence of SDO on attitudes towards people with physical disabilities, especially in attitudes towards social distance • Limitations: Future studies should explore types of experience in greater depth

17. Experiences at SPSP 2014 • What it was like... • What was learned... • Why it’s important...

18. Experiences