The unpopular truth about biases toward people with disabilities

Needing to ride in a wheelchair can put the brakes on myriad opportunities – some less obvious than one might think. New research from Michigan State University sheds light on the bias people have toward people with disabilities, known as “ableism,” and how it shifts over time.

Contrary to popular belief, the findings suggest that biases toward people with disabilities increase with age and over time, but that people are less likely to show how they really feel publicly.

“Disabilities are a sensitive, uncomfortable topic for many people to talk about. Few are willing to acknowledge a bias toward people with disabilities,” said William Chopik, MSU assistant professor of psychology and senior author. “Because this is so understudied, the goal of our research was to characterize why – and which types of – people hold higher biases against those with disabilities.”

Read the complete article from Michigan State University here: The unpopular truth about biases toward people with disabilities