Effects of Behavioral Treatment,Treatment Setting,and Client IQ on Person Perception

To explore whether the treatments clients receive can affect social perceptions of them, we examined the effects of type of behavior treatment (aversive or positive) and treatment environment (institution or community) on college students' perceptions of a behaviorally disturbed 17 year old who was either mentally retarded or of average intelligence. The aversive behavioral approach and institutional setting were judged less acceptable and less potentially effective than their counterparts and negatively affected perceptions of the client's competence and likelihood of future programs, though not of his social attractiveness and adjustment, regardless of his level of intelligence. These findings call attention to effects on persons perception of how others treat an individual and suggest another criterion by which psychological interventions might be evaluated: the extent to which they enhance or diminish positive perceptions of the individuals they are intended to benefit.