Demographic Differences in Mental Health Clinicians’ Attitudes Toward People with Disabilities

Individuals with disabilities constitute the largest minority population in the United States Nario-Redmond, 2020). Given the high prevalence and the unique stressors that coincide with the lived experience of disability, it is highly likely that mental health professionals will interface clinically with this population. However, most psychologists do not feel culturally competent to work with clients with disabilities (Conner et al., 2023). The current quantitative study analyzed the attitudes of mental health clinicians as measured by the Multidimensional Attitudes Toward Disabilities Scale (Findler et al., 2007) to understand if differences existed across areas of specialization, work setting, or ability status. In an independent samples t-test, participants who identified as disabled scored higher on the MAS (M=87.05, SD=16.55, SE=2.55) than able-bodied individuals (M=81.43, SD= 16.62, SE=1.39). Those who identified as disabled had significantly more positive attitudes, particularly about their thoughts and cognitions related to disability, when compared to their non-disabled counterparts.