Undergraduate Students' Attitudes Towards Marriage of Persons with Disabilities in the United Arab Emirates: Recommendations for a Gendered Approach

This study aimed to investigate the attitudes of university students in the United Arab Emirates towards the marriage of people with disabilities. To achieve this goal, a sample of 396 students, consisting of 222 women and 174 men, was selected. All participants were administered a scale of 15 items built according to the closed-ended Likert. The results indicated a high level of positive attitudes towards this type of marriage. Furthermore, the results showed no statistically significant differences in attitudes attributed to variables such as gender and academic year, while there were statistically significant differences favoring students in scientific colleges over those in humanities colleges regarding academic specialization. The study also reflects a wider gendered analysis based on the field of Arab women with disabilities studies. This might help us to understand how the cultural and societal nature of these norms could impact ways in which students view marriage amongst people with disabilities thus providing more insights into an intersection between gender and disability within UAE. The study concluded with several recommendations, including that the UAE law on the rights of persons with disabilities must emphasize the right to marriage for persons with disabilities. Keywords: Marriage of people with disabilities, University students, Gender variable, Academic specialization
Introduction Family is a vital organ in the establishment and maintenance of societies as it facilitates relations and aims for compatibility among individuals in the community and is where children [...]