Friendship Experiences of Participants in a University Based Transition Program.

Introduction The passage through adolescence into early adulthood typically involves a gradual breaking away from the family as the center of social activity and a move toward greater reliance on friendships with same age peers. School and neighborhood settings provide environments for social exploration and the gradual shift toward unsupervised social activity. For most youth, this move toward independent socialization intensifies greatly as they make the transition to college life. Historically, however, youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities who are entitled to public education services through age twenty-two, have not been afforded traditional college experiences. Encouragingly, in recent years many states in the US have initiated programs providing opportunities for young adults with intellectual disabilities to participate in transition activities located on college campuses, affording opportunities for increased independent social functioning and the development and strengthening of peer friendships (Eskow & Fisher, 2004; Grigal, Hart & Weir, 2012; Kirkendall, Doueck & Saladino 2009; Papay & Griffin, 2013). Although characteristics of these programs vary, most are non-degree and serve students in the 18-22 year old range, offering a combination of vocational, academic and social experiences. At the site of the current study (Florida, US), students between the ages of 18-22 who have exited high school with a special diploma participate in an on-campus program which provides them with varied career experiences and the opportunity to be part of college life through academic and social activities. Knowledge about how peer friendships develop and the quality of these experiences is lacking in the professional literature. In this article we begin to explore this topic by presenting the results of a study conducted with students participating in an on-campus transition program at a large metropolitan university in the southeastern United States. Friendship Related to Students with Disabilities Research on friendship related to students with disabilities over the past two decades has most often focused on examining the potential or actual relationships that develop between students with disabilities and their typical peers in inclusive environments, with limited attention given to the characteristics of relationships among adolescents and young adults with disabilities. Interestingly, Turnbull, Blue-Banning and Pereira (2000) note that although they set out to study friendships between students with and without disabilities in inclusive settings, one of the unintended findings of their research was that the status of the friendship partners was often more important to professionals than it was to the youth themselves. In other words, the professionals focused on whether students with disabilities had friends who did not have disabilities while the students themselves did not distinguish between their friends with and without disabilities. Additionally, the researchers advised further exploration to ensure that the adult-initiated facilitation of friendships for children with disabilities does not unintentionally stigmatize potential friends who happen to have a disability (p.149). With this caution in mind, we purposely do not refer to the status of our students' friends when discussing their relationships. In addition to a focus on relationships between students with disabilities and their typical peers, research on friendships among adolescents and young adults with disabilities has only rarely included the perspectives of the students themselves. Matheson, Olsen and Weisner (2007) used a combination of semi-structured interviews and field observations to examine friendship characteristics of adolescents with disabilities aged 16-17 in school settings. They reported that the majority of their participants had friendships with peers and that these relationships were characterized by a focus on companionship, emphasizing the importance of having peers with similar interests and also that friendships depended on proximity. …