Some Benefits Nonhandicapped Adolescents Perceive for Themselves from Their Social Relationships with Peers who Have Severe Handicaps

The perceptions of 21 nonhandicapped high school students were investigated in regard to the benefits they had experienced as a result of developing relationships with peers who had moderate or severe disabilities. Semi-structured interviews with the nonhandicapped students indicated their experiences resulted in six types of benefits: (a) improvements in self-concept, (b) growth in social cognition, (c) increased tolerance of other people, (d) reduced fear of human differences, (e) development of personal principles, and (f) interpersonal acceptance and friendship. Students also identified areas of difficulty they had experienced in their relationships with peers having disabilities. Results are discussed in terms of implications for policy analysis and research on social integration.