Social participation is an important prerequisite for inclusive learning in primary school education and a main condition for the success of inclusive learning environments. According to Koster, Nakken, Pijl and van Houten (2009), social participation is indicated by four main themes: friendships/relationships, interactions/contacts, perceptions of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) and acceptance by their classmates. Current studies reveal that the majority of students with different special educational needs have a satisfying degree of social participation (Koster, Nakken, Pijl, & van Houten, 2010). However, compared to their typically developing peers, students with SEN have fewer and more unstable friendships and are less accepted by their classmates (e.g., Frostad, Mjaavatan, & Pijl, 2011; Schwab, 2015a). Besides, primary school students’ attitudes towards their peers with SEN are important determinants for the successful inclusion of all students in common teaching. According to Eagly and Chaiken (1993) an attitude can be defined as “a psychological tendency that is expressed by evaluating a particular entity with some degree of favor or disfavor” (p. 1). In this context, three different components of attitudes (cognitive, affective, behavioral) can be distinguished (Triandis, 1971). The cognitive component includes beliefs and opinions about an attitude object. Emotional expressions towards an attitude object belong to the affective component. The behavioral component contains interactions with an attitude object. Actually, several studies indicate that primary school students without SEN hold neutral to moderately positive attitudes towards their peers with SEN in general (e.g., Schwab, 2015b). However, differences in primary school students’ attitudes relating to various characteristics and descriptions of special educational needs were found (de Boer, Pijl, Minnaert, & Post, 2014). In detail, primary school students’ attitudes towards peers with social or emotional disabilities are significantly less positive than towards peers with other disabilities (e.g., de Boer, Pijl, Post, & Minnaert, 2012; Schwab, 2015b).

Currently, there is a lack of studies concerning determinants of primary school students’ attitudes towards peers with SEN. But there is some evidence that teaching-related variables, primary school children`s self-efficacy beliefs concerning their interpersonal skills and their contact experiences with peers with SEN affect the development of their attitudes towards peers with SEN (e.g., de Boer, Pijl, Post, & Minnaert, 2012; Schwab, 2015b). Therefore, the theory of social referencing (Feinman, 1992) considers the perceived behavior of reference persons (e.g., parents, teachers) as a key issue for the development of young children`s attitudes and their habits. With regard to inclusive education, it is yet unclarified whether and to what extend primary school students’ attitudes towards peers with SEN are influenced by their perceived teacher behavior towards students with SEN (e.g., de Boer et al., 2012). Therefore, our study examines whether primary school students` attitudes towards peers with SEN can be predicted by their perceptions of their teachers` behavior, their self-efficacy beliefs concerning their interpersonal skills and their contact experiences. In detail, we assume that the effects of children`s perceptions of their teachers` behavior in the classroom are mediated by their self-efficacy beliefs concerning their interpersonal skills. Probably, children`s perceptions of their teachers` behavior can increase or decrease their self-efficacy beliefs concerning their interpersonal skills. One can assume that these processes lead to effects on children`s attitudes towards peers with SEN (Eccles, 2005). Based on several research findings (e.g. de Boer et al., 2012; Schwab, 2015b), we finally hypothesize that primary school students` attitudes towards peers with learning disabilities are significantly more positive than their attitudes towards peers with social or emotional disabilities.

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