Differences in attitudes towards inclusion between parents of children with and without disabilities

Abstract

IntroductionInclusion is among the greatest challenges facing educational systems throughout the world today. Parents’ attitudes play a key role in the successful implementation of inclusion. Therefore, there is a growing interest in comparing the attitudes towards inclusion among parents of children with and without disabilities. ObjectiveThe current study was set out to assess if there are differences in attitudes towards inclusion between parents of children with and without disabilities. MethodThe sample consisted of 332 parents (127 parents of children with disabilities and 205 parents of children without disabilities). All children attended general education primary schools. Participants completed anonymously the Greek version of Attitude Survey Towards Inclusive Education – Parents (de Boer et al., 2012a, b). ResultsThe findings showed no significant differences in attitudes towards inclusion between parents of children with and without disabilities. However, significant differences were found in parents’ attitudes towards inclusion based on their familiarity with a disabled person and the type of disabilities (congenital or acquired). ConclusionThese findings highlight the need to take into consideration parents’ and children's factors during the development of interventions to change attitudes towards inclusion.