Coworker reactions to a partner with a physical disability

The purpose of this study was to examine the relative impact of a task partner's physical disability, performance, and interpersonal behavior on the other partner's evaluations of and willingness to collaborate with that individual on a subsequent task. Participants were 198 students paired with a female confederate in one of eight combinations of conditions: nondisabled/disabled (paraplegic), success/failure, pleasant/unpleasant. Each participant/confederate pair completed a set of tasks, after which participants were asked to evaluate their partner and indicate how much they wanted to work with her again on a subsequent task. In general, participants did not respond the same way to the interpersonal behavior of a disabled confederate as they did with a nondisabled partner. Four theoretical models (kindness, social desirability, response amplification, reversed responses) were tested; none of these was supported. Contrary to findings of previous research, predicted affective response to disability was not found; rather, the findings support the notion of disability having a cognitive effect and moderating other variables' impact on evaluations and work-related decisions. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Psychology

Grantor dc:publisher

Colorado State University. Libraries

Year dc:date.issued

1998

Authors dc:creator

• Randall, Marjorie L., author
• Cropanzano, Russell, advisor
• Thornton, George C., 1940-, committee member
• Slater, Michael, committee member
• Rickard, Kathryn Marie, committee member

• People with disabilities -- Employment
• Discrimination against people with disabilities
• Sociology of disability

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.

Language dc:language.iso

eng, English

Identifier URI

https://doi.org/10.25675/3.024716

Identifier

ETDF1998400019PSYC

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:mountainscholar.org:10217/80828