A Cross‐cultural Study of Parental Attitudes and Beliefs About Learning Disability (Mental Handicap)

The literature suggests that Asian families have attitudes and beliefs about learning disability (mental handicap) which differ from those of white British families, and that these attitudes may have an influence on service utilisation. A structured interview schedule addressing these issues was piloted on 12 Asian and 12 white British families to determine its effectiveness in identifying attitudinal differences between the two groups. In this study, the differences in attitudes and beliefs were found to be unrelated to descriptive variables such as the characteristics of the son/daughter with a learning disability, and characteristics of the parents. However, attitudinal differences and service utilisation patterns were more related to religious and cultural differences. A further major influence on attitudes and service utilisation in Asian families was a lack of knowledge about the cause and concept of learning disability, and of the services available. The findings of this study highlight the short‐comings of services for black and ethnic minority people with learning disabilies, and have major implications for future service provision.