Segregation or Inclusion: An Experimental Study of the Psychological Support in the Professional Training for Persons with Disabilities

The article reveals the degree of effectiveness of segregated and inclusive forms of psychological and pedagogical support for students with special educational needs. In the psychological experiment took part 68 students with disabilities, its purpose was to identify the dynamics of the psychological well-being of the students depending on the inclusive or segregated forms of psychological trainings they took part in. As a result of the study, carried out with the help of the Scale of psychological well-being K. Riffe (adaptation of T.D. Shevelenkova, T.P. Fesenko), questionnaire Life Style Index (Plutchik, Kellerman, & Conte, 1979) and the methodology of SUN (V.A. Doskin, N.A. Lavrentieva, V.B. Sharay), we found out the differences between the groups of students according to their mood (t=7.55; p<0.001), well-being (t=4.89; p<0.001), activity (t=4.78; p<0.001), psychological well-being (t=4.65; p<0.001), tension of psychological defenses (t=2.27; p<0.05). These factors indicate the negative dynamics of psychological well-being of students with disabilities who studied in segregated groups with no conditionally healthy students. Based on the results of the psychological experiment, we made a conclusion, that the segregation of students with disabilities from other students is inexpedient, even if the purpose was providing them with psychological assistance in higher education.

Introduction

In modern conditions, in the context of the formation of a society of equal opportunities, the problems of developing a holistic theory of inclusive education remain relevant and have not yet been solved, which could become the basis for the implementation in practice of the ideas of accessibility of high-quality education, including higher education, for all citizens of the country, regardless of the presence or absence of certain health problems health [3].

Numerous normative legal acts regulating the activities of educational organizations to ensure accessibility of higher education for persons with disabilities and HIA emphasize the need to create special conditions to improve the quality of inclusive education, develop special measures to achieve the expected effect [2].

As a solution, adapted educational programs are offered separately for students with disabilities [4; 8], and recommended the use of special correctional and rehabilitation technologies in the educational process of the university [5; 9], the organization of psychological support, including psychodiagnostic, preventive and correctional procedures [7], medical and wellness support, social support [6; 12], the use of special teaching methods in the educational process of the university [15], conducting psychological trainings [18].

In many universities of Russia have been established special educational and methodological centers for inclusive education and supporting students with disabilities in their professional development [17]. Numerous scientific publications made the analysis of the activities of such Centers and declared the idea of separating students with disabilities from the general group of students in order to provide them with psychological and pedagogical assistance and support. Thus, some publications say that the main purpose of the activities of such Centers is to create a unified educational space where, according to the authors, all structural units of the university for the education of people with disabilities will interact [13; 16]; other studies emphasize that inclusive education cannot be effective without the organization of special support for students with disabilities At the same time, it is proposed to consider classes specially organized for them to correct their personal characteristics as such support [10; 11].

A theoretical analysis of numerous publications devoted to the problem of improving higher inclusive education has shown an almost unanimous opinion of researchers and practitioners on the need to organize a special service at the university dealing with the problems of students with disabilities and therefore working only with them through their segregation and separation from the general group of students. At the same time, it is already traditional and generally accepted that inclusive education is nothing more than a condition for preventing segregation of persons with disabilities [1; 4; 12; 14].

Thus, in modern scientific and methodological literature, an objectively valid contradiction has formed between, on the one hand, declaring the inadmissibility of segregation of persons with disabilities through the development of an inclusive education system, and, on the other hand, the proposal of specialists to segregate (isolate) them already inside the inclusive university itself in order to provide them with specialized psychological and pedagogical assistance.

The results of a theoretical understanding of the problem of organizing psychological support for students with disabilities in conditions of inclusive higher education indicate the need for a psychological experiment in order to identify the level of effectiveness of the same psychological support program, but implemented in inclusive and segregated groups of students. 

Methods

The study was conducted in the period from March 2022 to June 2022 in a face-to-face format. A psychological experiment was conducted, which consists in organizing two forms of psychological support for students with disabilities: within the framework of the developed programs, classes were held in the first case in inclusive groups, and in the second – in groups uniting only students with disabilities. In all groups of subjects, the same program of psychological assistance was implemented in a situation of low psychological well-being of the individual. The program involved conducting group training sessions for four months with a frequency of 1 time per week for 2,5 hours. A total of 16 training sessions were held. During the experiment, the dynamics of students' psychological well-being, their current psycho-emotional states, as well as the peculiarities of the relationship between psychological well-being and psychological defenses in two groups of subjects were studied.

The psychological experiment was conducted on the basis of 12 universities in Russia, where inclusive practices are implemented. All universities were partners of Resource Educational and Methodological Centers (RMC) operating in Moscow and St. Petersburg. At the time of the organization and conduct of the experimental study, from 6 to 39 students with disabilities studied in each of the "sponsored" or "partner" universities; in the universities where the RMC was established, from 124 to 625 people were students with disabilities of full–time and part-time education. 68 visually impaired students took part in the psychological experiment (n = 20; of these: 2 are blind with light perception; 11 are blind with objective vision; 7 are  students with functional visual impairments), hearing (n = 24; of these: 16 are hard of hearing students and 8 are inaudible), musculoskeletal functions (n = 24; all students in this group have preserved intelligence in the aftermath of spinal cord injuries and cerebral palsy). The overall research sample was formed based on the results of a preliminary study of the level of their psychological well-being (out of 186 surveyed students with disabilities, only those students who were characterized by an insufficient level of psychological well-being were selected). To organize the experiment, the entire research sample was divided into two experimental groups: 34 students made up the first experimental group, where psychological support was provided in an inclusive environment – a total of 10 training groups were formed, in which students with disabilities made up from 10% to 22% of the total number of training participants) and 34 – the second experimental group (3 segregated training groups of 10 to 12 students with disabilities).

The study was carried out using the following psychodiagnostic techniques:

1. "Scale of psychological well-being" by K. Riff (adaptation by Shevelenkova T.D., Fesenko T.P.);
2. The Plutchik—Kellerman–Conte Lifestyle Index questionnaire;
3. The SAN method (Doskin V.A., Lavrentieva N.A., Sharai V.B.).

The study used to compare and contrast the indicators identified in two experimental groups – the -2 criterion, the Student's t criterion (checking for the normality of the distribution was carried out using the Liliefors and Shapiro-Wilk criteria), the Mann-Whitney U criterion (when identifying gender differences), to assess the longitudinal change of the studied variables were used Wilcoxon's T-criterion, as well as Spearman's correlation coefficient for searching for relationships. The SPSS 22.0 program was used for data processing.

At the end of the experiment, positive changes occurred in the indicators of psychological well-being of students with disabilities in the first experimental group (the intensity of the positive shift was fixed at the level: T = 162, p = 0,02, which proves the positive effect of the program). In the control group, based on the calculation of Tnabl., the hypothesis about the effectiveness of the same program implemented by the same trainer was not confirmed, since Tnabl < 0).

In all groups of subjects, it was implemented by the same coach who has the appropriate qualifications and experience working with people with disabilities for more than five years.                     

Results

At the beginning of the experiment, there were no statistically significant differences in the indicators of psychological well-being in the two experimental groups (p > 0,05) on all scales of the corresponding questionnaire. The experimental groups were made up of students with disabilities who were characterized by a low level of satisfaction with the self-realization of their personality, inability to build positive relationships with other people, unwillingness to change something in themselves and their lives, lack of interest in life, faith in themselves and their strengths, and an unformed desire for a realistic perception of life and goals in it.

At the end of the experiment, positive changes occurred in the indicators of psychological well-being of students with disabilities in the first experimental group.

Figure 1 clearly shows the percentage distributions of students with disabilities from two research groups characterized by a decrease or increase in indicators of psychological well-being that occurred at the end of the experiment.

The majority of students who completed the training in an inclusive group with students without disabilities, had slightly increased indicators of psychological well-being. 32,35% of the training participants with disabilities during the experiment gained confidence in the ability to build positive relationships with other people, learned to accept themselves with all their advantages and disadvantages, formulate real goals in life, not to be offended by it, not to complain about their special position in society, not to blame themselves and others for failures and failure, to perceive oneself as a growing and striving for self-realization, open to new experiences. In 26,47% of students with disabilities of the first experimental group, the overall indicators of psychological well-being increased by 40-50 points, which indicates that the expected effect of the training was achieved.

In the second experimental group, where psychological training took place in conditions of segregation of students with disabilities, such an effect was not observed: in about half of the participants in the training over the past four months there was a slight, but decrease in indicators of psychological well-being.

It should be clarified that by the end of the experiment, less than half of the participants remained in the second experimental group, which may explain the low effectiveness of the developed psychological training program aimed at improving the level of psychological well-being of students with disabilities, as part of the psychological and pedagogical support of their professional training at the university.

A comparative analysis of the average group indicators of psychological well–being of students of the two experimental groups showed that if at the beginning of the experiment they did not differ from each other at a statistically significant level, then at the end of the experiment all the indicators provided by the methodology became significantly higher in the first experimental group.

During the training sessions, the participants were helped to realize their individuality and uniqueness, personal resources and potential abilities, they accumulated emotionally positive experiences, skills of adequate perception of other people, their feelings and emotions, the ability to manage emotional states, regulate behavior and activities. Participation in group discussions, exercises, and games in the training program was supposed to be a stimulating factor in the development of students with disabilities in the need for self-change, self-knowledge, and self-improvement. However, the achievement of the training goals, as shown by the psychological experiment, largely depends on the conditions of its implementation and the characteristics of the participants of the training groups. The fact that the training has a neutral or even negative impact on the personality of students with disabilities may be related to their psycho-emotional states caused by their life events and related experiences.

The study of the current psycho-emotional state of students with disabilities in two experimental groups showed the presence of certain problems in the second experimental group.

Thus, it was revealed that between the two experimental groups there are statistically significant differences in the average group indicators of the mood of students with disabilities (t = 7,55; p < 0,001), their well-being (t = 4,89; p < 0,001) and activity (t = 4,78; p < 0,001).

The decrease in mood among students with disabilities of the second experimental group could be caused by their negative emotional reactions to events that are significant to them and were considered as an obstacle to achieving the goal, as something that did not meet their expectations and hopes. In the second experimental group, activity indicators were also reduced, due to the limited interaction of students with disabilities with the outside world, their possible forecasts of further development of life events. Despite the fact that only the well-being, according to the estimates of students with disabilities, is on average in the range of positive values, its indicators are also lower than in the first experimental group.

Due to the reduced emotional background recorded in students with disabilities of the second experimental group at the end of the experiment, we decided to analyze the level of tension of psychological defenses of their personality.

First of all, it is necessary to focus on the fact that, according to an empirical study performed at the end of the psychological experiment, the overall level of tension of psychological defenses is significantly higher in the second experimental group than in the first (t = 2,27; p < 0.05).

Secondly, the indicators of the lifestyle index are not only interrelated with the level of psychological well-being, but also have gender characteristics.

Thus, a comparative analysis of the average group indicators obtained using the "Lifestyle Index" methodology in two experimental groups allows us to identify the gender characteristics of their relationship with indicators of psychological well-being of the individual.

In a subsample of young men, significant differences between the two experimental groups were revealed on the scales of "Regression" (p = 0,000) and "Denial" (p = 0,000).

These differences may indicate that young men with disabilities of the second experimental group, who mainly have a low level of psychological well-being, are prone to returning to earlier and infantile personality reactions. It can also be said that the boys of the second experimental group are more characterized by ignoring potentially disturbing information and avoiding it than the boys of the first experimental group.

In the female subsample, statistically significant differences were found between the two research groups on the "Substitution" and "Projection" scales.

The empirical data obtained suggest that girls with disabilities of the second experimental group who underwent psychological counseling in separate groups and have a low level of psychological well-being are more likely to transfer reactions from an "inaccessible" object to another object that is considered "accessible", as well as to unconscious transfers of their own unacceptable feelings, aspirations and desires for others.

The results of the correlation analysis of experimental data are of interest.

The revealed significant relationships between indicators of psychological well-being and mechanisms of psychological protection in the second experimental group are several times higher than in the first, moreover, the connections in the second group are stronger than in the first.

Correlation analysis showed that the indicators of autonomy in the first experimental group are interrelated with the indicators of regression (r = − 0,391 at p = 0,030), projection (r = − 0,362 at p = 0,045), compensation (r = − 0,374 at p = 0,038); in the second experimental group – with negation (r = − 0,805 at p = 0,000) and the total protection strength (ONZ) (r = − 0,457 at p = 0,010). The indicator of personal growth in the first experimental group is positively correlated with rationalization (r = 0,356 at p = 0,049) and negatively with ONZ (r = − 0,369 at p = 0,041); in the second group – with hypercompensation (r = − 0,874 at p = 0,000). The indicator of the goal in life in the first group correlates with rationalization (r = 0,359 at p = 0,047), and in the second – with displacement (r = − 0,917 at p = 0,000) and ONZ (r = − 0,796 at p = 0,000).

In addition, the direction of correlation in the first experimental group is almost always the opposite, that is, with a higher level of psychological well–being among students with disabilities who underwent psychological training in compliance with the basic principle of inclusion - participation in events without their separation into separate groups - the intensity of such defenses as regression, projection, and the general level of tension of the protective mechanisms. The connections with denial, hypercompensation, displacement and the general level of tension of protective mechanisms are revealed. The higher the indicators of psychological well-being, the lower the intensity of correlating defense mechanisms.                            

Discussion of the results

The results of the study confirm the idea that psychological support for the professional training of students with disabilities studying in an inclusive education environment cannot be effective if it is organized only for such students and involves their isolated participation in psychological activities. During the psychological experiment, it was revealed that the effectiveness of the same psychological support program decreases sharply if its implementation was carried out in isolated groups formed only from students with disabilities.

It should be clarified that in modern psychology and pedagogy of inclusive education there are partial studies that indirectly confirm the legality of considering the inadmissibility of segregation of students with disabilities in educational organizations.

Thus, according to, for example, K. Bollard, excessive attention on the part of teaching staff to the problems of students with disabilities leads to the fact that many of them are in a state of constant stress [19]. Bailey J., Banton B. It is indicated that students with disabilities experience frustration and excessive mental stress in the situation of providing them with special assistance in the inclusive education system [20].

Our psychological experiment has shown that when trying to isolate students with disabilities inside an inclusive university, even in order to provide them with the necessary psychological assistance, it can make such students to experience negative psycho-emotional states that prevent them from achieving the expected goals. The most humane goals here can not only be unrealized, but also have a completely opposite effect, turning into goals of segregation. This is especially true for the universities with a small number of students with disabilities  – less than 1-2%.

It should also be noted that the development and implementation of special programs for psychological support of vocational training of students with disabilities, involving special preventive, developmental and corrective measures in separate groups,  undermines the very foundations of inclusive education, its main, fundamental principles and priorities. It,  first of all, refers to the independent free choice of educational programs and learning conditions by each student, regardless of whether or not he has health problems. Inclusive education provides an opportunity for students with disabilities not only to gain access to quality education, but also to become competitive, on a par with students without disabilities.                                               

Conclusion

During the psychological experiment, it was found that the dynamics of the psychological well-being of students with disabilities in the context of the implementation of a specially developed program of one of the directions of psychological support for their professional training in isolated (segregated) groups is characterized by a negative orientation, whereas in inclusive groups it is positive. The interrelation of psychological well-being, we revealed current psycho-emotional states and psychological defenses of students with disabilities .

The psychological experiment showed the inexpediency of isolating and separating students with disabilities from the total number of students, even in order to provide them with psychological assistance at the university. In this regard, it is necessary to develop fundamentally new forms and methods of organizing psychological support for the professional training of students with disabilities as competitive specialists. The solution of the problem of psychological (adaptive, personal, professional, etc.) support for the professional training of students with disabilities cannot be carried out without solving the general problems of organizing psychological support for the professional and personal development of all students at the university, regardless of the presence or absence of health problems.

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