Reactions to Disability: an Empirical Investigation of their Nature and Structure

This paper describes the initial steps toward the construction of an experimental, multidimensional inventory to - measure reactions to physical disability. The Relations to Impairment and Disability Inventory (RIDI) was developed to provide information on eight patterns of psychosocial reactions to disability, namely: shock, anxiety, denial, depression, internalized anger, externalized hostility, acknowledgement, and adjustment. Data are presented on initial psychometric analyses of the inventory. Analyses of the eight scales supported their homogeneity and relative independence, and the inventory's construct validity was partially documented. A moderately high degree of relationship was found between the Acknowledgement and Adjustment scales and the Acceptance of Disability (AD) scale (Linkowski, 1971), providing partial support of the inventory's criterion-related validity.