Strengths-Based Media Coverage of Disability: Can Viewing the Paralympic Games Change Attitudes Toward Disability?

Area of Science:

• Disability Studies
• Media Psychology
• Social Psychology

Background:

• Traditional media portrayals of disability often focus on deficits, influenced by a medical model.
• Strengths-based media coverage aims to challenge these negative perceptions.
• The Paralympic Games are intended to promote inclusion and shift attitudes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of viewing Paralympic media coverage on explicit attitudes toward people with disability.
• To compare the effects of Paralympic versus Olympic media coverage on attitudes.
• To assess whether Paralympic media coverage challenges deficit-based perceptions of impairment.

Main Methods:

• University students (N=135) were assigned to view either Paralympic events, Olympic events, or no media for 12 days.
• Attitudes toward disability were measured using the Attitudes to Disability Scale before and after the intervention.
• A repeated-measures profile analysis with a doubly multivariate design was employed.

Main Results:

• Viewing Paralympic media coverage did not lead to significant improvements in explicit attitudes toward disability.
• No significant difference in attitude change was observed between the Paralympic and Olympic media groups.
• The study did not find evidence supporting the Paralympic Games' ability to alter perceptions of disability.

Conclusions:

• The Paralympic Games may not be effectively achieving their legacy goal of promoting inclusion.
• Media coverage of elite athletic events may not be sufficient to shift deeply ingrained societal attitudes towards disability.
• Further research is needed to explore effective strategies for challenging deficit-based perceptions of disability through media.