ADEA Climate Study results for students, staff, faculty, and administrators with versus without self-reported cognitive, emotional, and/or physical diverse abilities/disabilities.

objectivesIn 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 28.7% of adults in the United States experienced some form of disability. The objectives were to assess if respondents who self-identified by positively responding to the question if they had versus did not have "cognitive, emotional, and/or physical diverse abilities/disabilities" differed in perceptions of (a) their academic units' cultural climate, (b) social relationships/social support, (c) mental health/well-being, and (d) academic/professional outcomes. Additional objectives were to analyze these answers by respondent type (i.e., students/staff/faculty/administrators) and to explore relationships between these constructs of interest.

methodsA total of 13,008 respondents in the 2022 American Dental Education Association Climate Study answered the question if they had a cognitive, emotional, and/or physical diverse ability/disability, 1805 respondents (13.9%) answered affirmatively.

resultsOn average, respondents with diverse abilities/disabilities were less satisfied with the climate of their academic unit (five-point scale with 5 = most positive: 3.38 vs. 3.67; p < 0.001), and considered their culture as less humanistic (3.53 vs. 3.80; p < 0.001) and less inclusive (3.70 vs. 3.90; p < 0.001) than respondents without a diverse ability/disability. Respondents with diverse abilities/disabilities agreed less that they had positive relationships (means: 3.77 vs. 3.96; p < 0.001) and social support (3.69 vs. 3.93; p < 0.001); they had a less positive sense of belonging (3.62 vs. 3.86; p < 0.001) and positive well-being (3.51 vs. 3.82; p < 0.001) and agreed less that they could live up to their academic/professional potential (3.77 vs. 3.97; p < 0.001) than their counterparts. For each respondent group, respondents with diverse abilities/disabilities had less positive responses than respondents without diverse abilities/disabilities. The more positive respondents with diverse abilities/disabilities perceived their institutions' climate, the more they agreed they had positive relationships (r = 0.70; p < 0.001), positive social support (r = 0.72; p < 0.001), a positive sense of belonging (r = 0.76; p < 0.001) and well-being (r = 0.78; p < 0.001), and could reach their potential (r = 0.70; p < 0.001).

conclusionsStudents/staff/faculty/administrators/administrators with faculty appointments who self-identify as having "cognitive, emotional, and/or physical diverse abilities/disabilities" differ from those who do not self-identify as such. They have less positive perceptions of their institutions' climate, their social relationships, poorer mental health, and academic/professional outcomes. The fact that climate perceptions are significantly correlated with mental health and academic/professional outcomes should be a call to action for dental educators to create a climate supportive of all members of their communities.