Understanding negative attitudes toward disability to foster social inclusion: An Australian case study

Negative attitudes toward disability remain prevalent as evidenced by research throughout Western countries—including Australia—despite decades of inclusion policy and practice. What is less understood are the types of negative attitudes experienced by people with disability and the settings in which they are experienced. A more sophisticated understanding of negative attitudes may provide the nuanced knowledge to inform policy and practice. This chapter outlines findings from the Australian “1 in 4 Poll Attitudes Survey,” that surveyed adults with a disability throughout Australia about their experience of negative attitudes toward disability. The Poll was conducted by Deakin University in partnership with Scope—a Victorian disability service provider. The findings from the “1 in 4 Poll” offer a more detailed analysis of specific attitudes experienced and needing to be changed, the settings they are experienced in and the differential experience of people with different disabilities. This data helps us better target attitude change interventions, such as by selecting and presenting personal accounts about people with disability that challenge specific attitudes held about that group, as well as the settings these most often occur in.