The Impact of Information-Processing Styles on College Students' Attitudes toward People with Disabilities

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between information- processing styles, as defined by using Epstein's (1994) cognitive-experiential self-theory (CEST), and college students' attitudes toward people with disabilities (PWD). The ability and favorability to process information experientially or rationally were measured using the Rational Experiential Inventory (REI), and attitudes toward PWD were measured using the Attitudes Towards Disabled Persons Scale-Form O (ATDP-O). Undergraduate students (N = 163) from a psychology subject pool participated in this study. Results indicated that favoring an experiential style of information processing was positively related to attitudes toward PWD. The ability to process information experientially or rationally and the favoring of a rational style of information processing were not found to be related to attitudes toward PWD. Implications for rehabilitation counselors are discussed.