Handicapped and able-bodied children's ideas of health

The findings of a study of 240 handicapped and able-bodied children's ideas of health and health self-concept are reported. Children ages six-14 were interviewed using a semistructured format to determine what the word "health" meant to them, how they could tell when someone was healthy, if they saw themselves as healthy, and whether a child with a broken leg, in a wheelchair, or after an operation could be healthy. The Child Health Self-Concept Scale (CHSCS) was administered to 100 children. Results revealed both handicapped (N = 104) and able-bodied (N = 136) children viewed health similarly, and ideas were influenced more by age than by handicap. Even when they declare someone else with a disability as unhealthy, both groups see themselves as healthy. Implications for research are presented and ideas about society's emphasis on physical fitness are discussed.