Esther Shurka

Attitudes of Israeli Arabs Towards the Mentally Ill

A sample of 91 Israeli Arab subjects were interviewed in a structured, closed-item questionnaire about their attitudes towards former mental patients. The results indicated the predominance of negative attitudes towards intimate relationships with such patients and towards their work potential. The respondents did not appear to have a clear idea about the dangers posed by former mental patients; this suggested a generally ambiguous attitude towards the patients and the policy of institutionalization. Educational level and religion (Moslem or Christian) were found to affect attitudes significantly, with the more highly educated and/or Christian respondents expressing less negative attitudes.

Evaluation of Persons with a Physical Disability: The Influence of Variables Related to the Disabled on Arab and Jewish Youth

The impact of ethnic group, disability framework, and responsibility for the disability on evaluation of the physically disabled was examined in Israel. Arab and Jewish students were asked to evaluate a disabled person shown on videotape. Before and after seeing the videotape, subjects were given additional information pertaining to the circumstances in which the person became disabled. The results of the three-way analysis of variance indicated that disability per se was not the sole variable that influenced evaluations of the disabled; the variables of the study superimposed on the disability did affect the evaluations of the disabled. Disability framework, that is, civilian versus military disabled, appears to have the strongest single effect on evaluation of disabled persons. Responsibility for the disability influenced the evaluations in certain identifiable contexts. Ethnic group expressed itself as a general variable and its impact could only be assessed in relation to the other variables.

Attitudes Towards Disability and Rehabilitation Among Political and Professional Leaders in Israeli Development Towns

The process by which development towns were created in Israel engendered the need for welfare and rehabilitation services for a varied population. The present ex ploratory study focussed on the opinions of two groups of persons who supposedly represent and direct the social services in their communities — political leaders and professional leaders. A sample of 120 local leaders in ten development towns in northern Israel were individually interviewed on their attitudes towards disability and rehabilita tion, based on an original questionnaire. The results indicated several problems in attitudes towards disability and rehabilitation that can be seen as characteristic of local leadership, and possibly of the general population in Israeli development towns.