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Introduction Methods Conclusions 270 undergraduate subjects completed an online questionnaire consisting of a demographics form and the following measures: Contact with Disabled Persons Scale (Yuker & Hurley, 1987) Estimates of the prevalence of disabilities (e.g. Out of 100 people, how many do you think have a disability?) Pairs of analogous questions of subjects perceptions of likelihood of themselves and others experiencing disability in three domains: During lifetime (e.g. what do you think are the chances that you/a person will have a disability at some point in life?) During old age (e.g. what do you think are the chances that you you/a person will have a disability during old age?) Child with disability (e.g. what do you think are the chances that you/a parent will have a child with a disability?) Perception of the Likelihood of Disability to Oneself and Others Leo Schlosnagle, Ph.D. & Amanda L. McBean, Ph.D. Decisions that proactively manage risk (i.e. insurance purchase, lifestyle choices, etc.) rely, in part, on an individuals perception of risk or likelihood of certain events. Research shows that people are prone to making inaccurate likelihood assessments. In the U.S., 18.7% of people have a disability, and 70.5% of individuals over the age of 80 have a disability (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). Furthermore, 13.9% of children in the US between the ages of 3-17 have a developmental disability (Boyle et al., 2011). Based on these statistics, many people will experience the effects of disability in their lifetimeeither directly or indirectly through a loved one with a disability. Accurate perceptions of the likelihood of disability and disability preparedness are therefore relevant issues for all people (with and without disabilities). Costa-Font (2011) explored longevity and old age disability expectations and found individuals tended to perceive higher risks to other people than to themselves, suggesting an optimistic bias. This study has three goals: 1) Replicate research showing that people are biased in their perceptions of the likelihood of a disability in old age occurring to themselves versus other people; 2) Provide novel information on likelihood estimates of having a child with a disability and developing a disability at some point during an individuals life; and 3) Assess how contact with people with disabilities relates to likelihood estimates, and assess how subjects disability prevalence estimates compare to actual prevalence rates. Results Subjects perceived that the likelihood of experiencing a disability is higher for others than for themselves. Compared to actual disability prevalence rates, subjects overestimated the prevalence of disabilities in the general population, and among children, but they underestimated the prevalence of disabilities among older adults. Contact with people with disabilities was positively related to subjects perceptions of the likelihood of themselves having a child with a disability and experiencing disability during their lifetime and during old age. Disparate perceptions of the likelihood of oneself versus others experiencing a disability could relate to a variety of sub-optimal health promoting decisions and disability preparedness. These topics should be addressed in future research. The result that subjects perceived others to be more likely than themselves to experience disability in old age, combined with the result that subjects underestimated the prevalence of disabilities in old age, suggests a need to educate the public about the likelihood of experiencing disability in old age. Contact with people with disabilities appears to be related to peoples perceptions of the likelihood of experiencing a disability. Therefore, it may be useful to investigate the effects of involving people with disabilities in educating the public about the likelihood of experiencing a disability and/or having a child with a disability. References Boyle, C.A., Boulet, S., Schieve, L.A., Cohen, R.A., Blumberg, S.J., Yeargin- Allsopp, M., Visser, S., Kogan, M.D. (2011). Trends in the prevalence of developmental disabilities in US children, 1997-2008. Pediatrics, 127, 1034-1042. Costa-Font, J., Costa-Font, M. (2011). Explaining optimistic old age disability and longevity expectations. Social Indicators Research, 104, 533-544. Yuker, H. E. & Hurley, M. K. (1987). Contact with and attitudes toward persons with disabilities: The measurement of intergroup contact. Rehabilitation Psychology, 32, 145-154 U.S. Census Bureau, Survey of Income and Program Participation, May-August 2010. * p