Do we react differently toward bionic devices vs. cochlear implants and wheelchairs? Possible links with personality traits

Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences

Rehabilitation Sciences

Alexandra Maftei¹  Alois Gherguț²  Diana-Alina Oancea-Matei² 

[1] Correspondence:;Department of Education Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Iași, Romania;

关键词: disability;    personality;    bionic eye;    bionic limb;    attitudes;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fresc.2023.1159663

 received in 2023-02-07, accepted in 2023-06-27,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

The present study explored the attitudes toward individuals with bionic eyes and limbs, cochlear implants, and people with disabilities that imply using a wheelchair. Our sample consisted of 474 Romanian adults aged 18–61 (M = 27.56, SD = 11.80). Participants were randomly divided into five groups. They all filled scales related to personality characteristics, i.e., agreeableness, neuroticism, openness to experience, comprehension/intellectual efficiency, and previous contact with disability. Then, each group was presented with a vignette describing a character (wheelchair/bionic eye/bionic leg/cochlear implant/control group). Finally, they answered questions about their emotions, cognitions, and behaviors related to that context. Overall, our results suggested that higher agreeability, extraversion, openness to experience, intellectual complexity, and lower neuroticism were generally associated with more positive attitudes toward disability. When examining the differences in participants' emotions, cognitions, and behaviors depending on the target's characteristics, our results generally suggested that the most negative reactions were toward the character with a bionic eye. We discuss these findings considering their importance for shaping positive attitudes related to disability, especially related to the future technological advances in bionic devices.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
© 2023 Oancea-Matei, Gherguț and Maftei.