The Student Comfort Scale measures the comfort level of graduate level occupational therapy students pre and post exposure to and intervention with adults with a psychiatric disability including learning disabilities, mental illness, and/or autism spectrum disorders. Prior to this, no such scale existed. This scale was developed from a literature review that discussed the factors that influenced occupational therapy students’ attitudes regarding individuals with psychiatric disabilities. It was designed specifically for use with the Bridge Program to determine the change in level of comfort of MSOT students after working with the mental health population (Gutman et al., 2007). Test-retest reliability was determined through the use of the Spearman’s rho correlation. Cronbach’s alpha was used to determine internal consistency of this measure (Schindler, 2011). STUDENT COMFORT SCALE Occupational Therapy Student Comfort Scale Rae Aaronson, Emily Heerema, Jess Kline, Danielle Lance, Keith Silfan; Master of Science in Occupational Therapy Program Faculty Advisor: Victoria Schindler PhD, OTR, BCMH, FAOTA The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey Overall Themes: 1. 1.MSOT students’ general impressions of people with psychiatric disabilities Pre-Test: The majority of MSOT students indicated that this population was unpredictable, but could live normal lives. Post- Test: The majority of MSOT students indicated that this population is often misunderstood, but with proper support and treatment individuals can be successful members of society MSOT students’ biggest concerns about working with people with psychiatric disabilities Pre-Test: The majority of MSOT students had a fear of the unknown in terms of how this population would act and behave in various situations. Post- Test: The majority of MSOT students indicated that they began to understand the actions and behaviors of this population after working one- on-one with individuals in the Bridge Program Influences of previous experiences on MSOT students’ feelings of working with people with psychiatric disabilities Pre-Test: The majority of MSOT students had a fear of incompetence due to little experience and stereotypes with this population. Post- Test: The majority of MSOT students indicated an increased level of confidence and competence level with this population. Sample selection bias: sample was not randomized and no control group Detection bias: lack of independent evaluation, memory bias Co-intervention bias Generalizability Subject ability Data analysis was conducted on 20 MSOT students using related-samples Wilcoxon signed rank test. N = 20; 5 Males and 15 Females, age Pre-Test Mean=35.85 Post-Test Mean=41.95 Difference Pre-Test to Post-Test = 6.10 P value = Total average post-test scores were higher than total average pre-test scores. Statistical Significance Achieved 10 question, 5- point Likert scale with three open ended questions. The possible responses were: (1) Strongly agree, (2) Tend to agree, (3) Neither agree or disagree, (4) Tend to disagree, (5) Strongly disagree. The pre-test was given at the start of the first year of the MSOT program, Fall The post-test was given at the end of the second year of the MSOT program, Spring QUANTITATIVE RESULTSQUALITATIVE RESULTSLIMITATIONS DISCUSSION The results show that MSOT students who worked with individuals with a psychiatric disability reported an increased level of comfort in working with this population. This is evidenced by the statistically significant difference in quantitative post-test mean scores compared to pre-test mean scores. The qualitative results support the quantitative results. Themes in the qualitative results indicate that MSOT students had more confidence after working with this population and had a more positive outlook on this population’s ability to function successfully in society with proper support. This study adds to the body of knowledge in this area by reporting quantitative and qualitative results that indicate that students have a higher level of comfort in working with people with mental health diagnoses after exposure to an intervention with this population. PRE-TEST AND POST-TEST METHOD CONCLUSIONS The purpose of this study was to report the comfort level of MSOT students before and after working with individuals with psychiatric disabilities. Quantitative and qualitative results demonstrate that through working with this population overall impressions became more positive, fears diminished, and comfort level increased. Implications from this study indicate that programs that expose students to working therapeutically with the mental health population will allow students to have a more positive impression of this community and will be more confident and comfortable in working with these individuals. REFERENCES Gutman, S. A., Schindler, V. P., Furphy, K. A., Klein, K., Lisak, J. M., & Durham, D. P. (2007). The effectiveness of a supported education program for adults with psychiatric disabilities: The bridge program. Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 23(1), Schindler, V. P. (2011). Using service-learning to teach mental health and research skills. Occupational Therapy in Health Care, 25(1),