A national study of Chinese youths' attitudes towards students with intellectual disabilities.
Chinese middle-schoolers are hesitant to include peers with ID academically—boosting perceived competence may increase acceptance.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Ahrens et al. (2011) asked Chinese middle-school students how they view classmates with intellectual disability.
Kids filled out a survey about how capable they think these peers are and if they would work with them.
The goal was to see what predicts willingness to include students with ID in class work.
What they found
Students saw peers with ID as only somewhat capable and doubted they could keep up in class.
They were okay hanging out at lunch, but most did not want them in group projects or tutoring pairs.
The stronger the belief that a peer can do the work, the more willing they were to interact.
How this fits with other research
Laugeson et al. (2014) asked typical kids why they exclude. The top answer was "they’re different." N et al. show that in China "different" quickly turns into "not smart enough for math or science partners."
Alvarez et al. (1998) ran cooperative learning groups and saw acceptance jump. That RCT supports the new survey: when kids experience a classmate succeeding in a shared task, perceived competence rises and willingness to interact follows.
Wang et al. (2023) add that Chinese parents’ attitudes also shape academic fate. Combine the two studies: peer views and parent views form a double hurdle for students with ID; tackle both sides.
Why it matters
You can’t wait for culture to change on its own. Start small: build quick cooperative activities where the student with ID has a clear, doable role. When peers see success, their "can-do" rating goes up and doors to group work open. Track who invites the student to join next time; that social validity tells you if the perception needle is moving.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: In recent years, there has been a global effort to support the inclusion of students with intellectual disabilities (ID) in schools and classrooms. China in particular has recently enacted laws that provide for inclusive educational opportunities for students with ID. There are many barriers, however, to successfully including students with ID in regular education schools and classrooms, one of which is negative attitudes. Over the past decade, much research has focused on documenting the attitudes of the adult public; however, adults only represent one segment of society as it is youth who play a critical role in the successful inclusion and acceptance of students with ID in schools and classrooms. The aim of this study was to replicate a previous study of middle school-aged youths' attitudes towards the inclusion of peers with ID conducted with youth in the USA with similar aged youth in China. METHODS: A survey was conducted with a random sample of 4059 middle school-aged youth in China on their attitudes towards students with ID. Students' attitudes were measured in terms of their perceptions of the capabilities of students with ID, their beliefs about and expectations regarding the inclusion of students with ID and their willingness to interact with students with ID both in and out of school. RESULTS: The findings indicated that youth in China (1) perceive students with ID as moderately, rather than mildly, impaired; (2) believe that students with ID can not participate in their academic classes; (3) view inclusion as having both positive and negative effects on them personally; and (4) do not want to interact with a peer with ID in school, particularly on academic tasks. Structural equation modelling showed that youths' perceptions of the competence of students with ID significantly influenced their willingness to interact with these students and their support of inclusion. CONCLUSIONS: The findings replicated previous research conducted with middle school-aged youth in the USA and are discussed from a cultural perspective and in terms of the current special education policies and practices in China.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2011 · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2788.2011.01382.x