Interventions for acceptance and inclusion of people with intellectual disability: A systematic review

The inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities is limited due to a high prevalence of prejudice towards this population. We reviewed studies to identify the most effective intervention methods that focus on acceptance of people with intellectual disabilities.

A literature review was conducted using several databases-EBSCO, Web of Science, Google Scholar. The search resulted in 6728 articles, of which 26 met the inclusion criteria.

Studies were largely consistent in reporting positive changes after interventions. Although there is no obvious pattern to determine the efficacy of an, long interventions or those involving direct contact may have the most beneficial effects on the relationships between people with and those without intellectual disabilities.

The evidence suggests that several types of interventions impact the knowledge, change in the attitudes, behaviour and self-related constructs that lead to the acceptance of people with intellectual disability.