Classical and modern prejudice towards individuals with intellectual disabilities: A study on a sample of Italian university students

The present study aims to explore classical and modern prejudice towards individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) among a sample of Italian university students who attend Social Sciences and Physical Sciences degree courses. A convenience sample of 280 university students (51.4% doing Social Sciences degrees, and 48.6% doing Physical Sciences degrees) participated in this research. Two separate hierarchical multiple regression analyses were carried out to examine the relationship between the variables in order to identify which predictors affect the expression of prejudice towards people with ID. The results showed that classical prejudice was predicted by males, no prior work experience with individuals with ID, Big Five, personality traits such as agreeableness and openness, low reactive empathy, reduced quality of contact, and intergroup anxiety. Modern prejudice was predicted by males, students who attended Physical Sciences degree courses, no prior work experience with individuals with ID, low parallel and reactive empathy. Limitations and practical implications are discussed.