Shortly after being hired as HR director for Denton Plastics, Norma Daggett faced a dilemma. Daggett, who has a slight hearing impairment, expressed a desire to employ more qualified persons with disabilities in jobs that they could successfully handle. Unfortunately, Daggett found that certain individuals in the company held negative attitudes toward persons with disabilities as employees. She felt these attitudes were based on erroneous information, probably advanced in order to cover up discriminatory beliefs. After reflecting on the problem, she decided to elicit basic attitudes by having managers respond to the following statements regarding disabled persons:

1. Most [people with disabilities] require no special arrangements (True)
2. The real problem for [people with disabilities] is holding a job rather than getting one. (False)
3. Accident rates are generally higher for [people with disabilities] than for other employees. (False)
4. Absenteeism is generally lower for [people with disabilities] than for other employees. (True)
5. Those with the severest impairments are likely to be at the top in their job performance. (True)
6. The number of jobs requiring an able-bodied person with unimpaired faculties is increasing. (False)
7. Turnover tends to be higher among workers [with disabilities] than among workers at large. (False)
8. Special privileges for the [people with disabilities], such as a special parking spot, usually create antagonism among their employees. (False)

From Managing Human Resources, 11th edition, by A. Sherman, G.W. Bohlander, and S. Snell. © 1998. Reprinted with permission of South-Western College Publishing, a division of International Thomson Publishing. Fax 800-730-2215.