THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SELECTED PERSONAL AND EDUCATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF COLLEGIATE COORDINATORS FOR DISABLED STUDENTS AND THEIR ATTITUDES TOWARD DISABLED PERSONS

The study's purpose was: to ascertain the attitudes of Collegiate Coordinators for Disabled Students (CCDS) toward disabled persons, as measured by the Attitude Towards Disabled Persons Scale-O (ATDP-O), to determine the relationship between the identified attitudes and each of six personal and/or educational characteristics (age, sex, marital status, highest academic degree attained, number of college courses completed related to the needs of disabled students, and frequency of personal face-to-face interactions with disabled students over the past twelve months, and to interpret the findings for their implication regarding the selection and training of prospective CCDS. The study population, 409 CCDS holding membership in the Association for Handicapped Student Service Programs in Post-Secondary Education, were mailed two research instruments: The Personal Data Inventory and the Attitude Towards Disabled Persons Scale-O, (ATDP-O). A total of 329 sets were returned satisfactorily completed, yielding a net return rate of 81%. The statistical treatment employed was Student's t test; the alpha level was .01. Of the six hypotheses, two were supported and four were not supported. A statistically significant difference was found between the mean ATDP-O scores for the CCDS when categorized by sex and when categorized by age. The female CCDS' significantly higher score indicates that female CCDS are inclined to have more positive attitudes toward disabled persons than their male counterparts. The mean ATDP-O score for CCDS who are forty or older, suggesting CCDS below age forty tend to hold more accepting attitudes toward disabled persons than their colleagues forty or older. Four hypotheses were not supported. No statistically significant difference was found between the mean ATDP-O scores for the CCDS when categorized by: marital status, academic preparation, number of completed college courses on disabled student needs, and number of daily face-to-face interactions with disabled students. The mean ATDP-O mean score for the CCDS was significantly higher than the ATDP-O mean score for the normative reference group (nondisabled adult men and women) suggesting that the CCDS are significantly more accepting toward disabled persons than are adults in general.