First Impressions Are Not Last Impressions
First Impressions are Not Lasting Impressions
When you see a person in a wheelchair, a person with no legs, or a person with physical abnormalities what is you reaction? Do you stare with curiosity? Do you pretend to be indifferent and walk by like there is no person there at all? Are you disgusted or stricken with pity? Or do you see them as a person, just like you, living their life the best they know how? Our perception of people are largely based on their physical appearance and often the thoughts that enter our minds when we see an individual that has a visual disability are negative and cause us to formulate a disapproving impression about their person as a whole. The question lies in what happens with the initial impression. Do we even move past that negative perception to get to know the person or do we make the decision not to even bother? Or if we do pursue a relationship with a person that has a disability, do those first impressions still affect how we view them? All of these questions are probed deeper by Wright in his book: Physical Disability- A Psychological Approach.
Wright studies found that the tendency for humans to make judgments based simply on exterior appearances and first impressions has immense implications one those who posses visible disabilities. The conclusions that we many make about these individuals have attributed to their further isolation from society and have robbed them from being able to having meaningful relationships. Wright, however, learns some interesting facts about the relationship of two people after the preliminary meeting. For those who are willing to look past their initial bias of the disabled person and invest themselves into their life will then find that they are just like everyone else and have a lot to offer this world that we live in. "A visible disability is more apt to dominate the relationship between strangers than between people who know each other."(Chapter 4, pg. 74)
Wrights
When you see a person in a wheelchair, a person with no legs, or a person with physical abnormalities what is you reaction? Do you stare with curiosity? Do you pretend to be indifferent and walk by like there is no person there at all? Are you disgusted or stricken with pity? Or do you see them as a person, just like you, living their life the best they know how? Our perception of people are largely based on their physical appearance and often the thoughts that enter our minds when we see an individual that has a visual disability are negative and cause us to formulate a disapproving impression about their person as a whole. The question lies in what happens with the initial impression. Do we even move past that negative perception to get to know the person or do we make the decision not to even bother? Or if we do pursue a relationship with a person that has a disability, do those first impressions still affect how we view them? All of these questions are probed deeper by Wright in his book: Physical Disability- A Psychological Approach.
Wright studies found that the tendency for humans to make judgments based simply on exterior appearances and first impressions has immense implications one those who posses visible disabilities. The conclusions that we many make about these individuals have attributed to their further isolation from society and have robbed them from being able to having meaningful relationships. Wright, however, learns some interesting facts about the relationship of two people after the preliminary meeting. For those who are willing to look past their initial bias of the disabled person and invest themselves into their life will then find that they are just like everyone else and have a lot to offer this world that we live in. "A visible disability is more apt to dominate the relationship between strangers than between people who know each other."(Chapter 4, pg. 74)
Wrights