Mary Wood

Year

2018

Season

Spring

Degree Type

Honors Thesis

College

College of Arts and Sciences

Department

Psychology

Degree Name

Honors in the Major

First Advisor

Curtis Phills

Second Advisor

Lorie Lange

Abstract

D/deaf individuals face discrimination in their daily lives, impacting their access to language, education, and life satisfaction. While there has been research about some of the stereotypes held about those who are D/deaf, the relationship between those stereotypes and prejudice and discrimination has not been explored, to my knowledge. Additionally, how D/deaf individuals are categorized has not been examined, to my knowledge. Understanding whether the hearing majority holds a distinct cognitive schema for those who are D/deaf or consider D/deaf people within a larger group of disabled people will help in creating anti-bias interventions. For example, if hearing people have a distinct cognitive schema for D/deaf individuals, then anti-bias interventions can focus on changing that schema. However, if hearing people view D/deaf individuals as part of the group of disabled people, then anti-bias interventions targeting the D/deaf cognitive schema will not be sufficient. I recruited a sample of 480 participants via MTurk. They were instructed to list and evaluate stereotypes about the D/deaf and disabled, evaluate the D/deaf and disabled, and answer questions regarding behavioral intentions toward the D/deaf and disabled. To examine the cognitive schema held towards those who are Deaf, a linear regression was conducted with evaluations D/deaf individuals as the dependent variable and stereotypes about the D/deaf and disabled as predictors. Neither predictor was significant. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for developing interventions to reduce the bias against the D/deaf.

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