Abstract

Almost everyone may be temporarily or permanently impaired at some point in life, and those who survive to old age will experience increasing difficulties in functioning. Disability is therefore, part of the human condition and as such, no respecter of anybody. Beliefs about the causes of disabilities tend to condition discriminations against the special needs individual (SNI). People have reacted in different ways to disabling conditions; such reactions include: shame, prejudice, fear and exclusion from family or community life. Against this background, this paper takes a cursory look at societal discrimination against SNI with the view to ameliorating their conditions. In realisation of this, the paper discusses concept of special needs and/ or special education; the national baseline survey on persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Nigeria; situation analysis of PWDs in Nigeria; background to societal attitudes and discriminations towards PWDs culminating in the construction of a theoretical framework for understanding societal attitudes. Societal discriminations and attitudes on life domains towards the SNI, efforts made at improving the well-being of individuals with special needs and the psycho-strategic policies to reducing discriminations are altogether not left untreated in this discourse. Implications of policy levels for changing societal attitudes and track records and strengths of PWDs are equally and exhaustively explicated knowing fully that there is ability in disability. Finally, the paper draws conclusion and proffers array of recommendations which should be viewed as sacrosanct to provide the needed policy framework for discrimination reduction and attitudinal change towards individuals with special needs in Nigeria.