A Rasch measure of university students' receptivity to peers with disabilities across two cultures
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publisher
Nova Science Publishers
Faculty
Faculty of Education and Arts
School
School of Education / Fogarty Learning Centre
RAS ID
10156
Abstract
This study aimed to create a linear measure of university students’ receptivity to peers with disabilities across two cultures (Western Australia and India). Data were collected at two universities in Perth, Western Australia (Edith Cowan University and the University of Notre Dame in Fremantle), and two universities in India (The University of Calcutta, and the University of Jadavpur) via a 20 stem-item questionnaire (N=996) based on six aspects supporting receptivity to peers with disabilities: Academic, Interactive, Social, Personal, Professional and Supportive, answered in two perspectives: (1) an ideal self-view (What I think I should do) and (2) their self-reported behavior (what I actually do). This makes an effective item sample of 40. Following initial analysis with a Rasch computer program (RUMM 2020), 10 items were deleted as not fitting the measurement model (5 attitude and 5 different behaviors), leaving 30 items in the final scale. The final 30 items all fitted within p=0.01; the response categories were answered consistently and logically and the Person Separation Index was 0.87, but the item-trait interaction chi-square was too high (367.6,df=270,p=0.00) showing that the scale was not uni-dimensional. Attitude items were easier than behavior items, as predicted, but many items did not fit the model, probably because the complex wording allowed different persons to respond differently to the same item for the same level of receptivity.
Comments
Biswas, M. , & Waugh, R. F. (2010). A Rasch measure of university students' receptivity to peers with disabilities across two cultures. In Russell F. Waugh (Eds.). Specialized Rasch Measures Applied at the Forefront of Education (pp. 207-226). Hauppauge, New York: Nova Science Publishers, Inc. Available here.