Assessment of Special Needs People Towards Environmental Awareness in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Abstract

Problem statement: This research examines knowledge and attitudes towards environmental awareness among special needs individuals in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The population census of (136) special needs individuals with different types of disabilities; physical impairments, visual impairments and hearing impairments from different locations of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan participated in the survey and completed the questionnaire in 2010. The targeted population encompassed Jordanian special needs citizens with different backgrounds including; age, location of residency, gender, social status and education levels. The questionnaire consisted of (27) questions concerning major environmental issues. Approach: Analysis of Variance was conducted on the means of the sample population determined by gender, age, education and geographic distribution to verify that the apparent differences of the means were statistically significant. The environmental awareness among special needs females in all locations exceeded the total awareness of special needs males. Results: The Statistical Package for Social Sciences conducted on the sample revealed that special needs people in cities have better environmental awareness in comparison to the special needs people who live in villages and rural areas. Conclusions: The education level played a significant role in the degree of environmental awareness in all locations surveyed. Environmental awareness was directly affected by the type of disability; people with physical impairments had a better environmental awareness than individuals with hearing and vision disabilities as the percentage of environmental awareness reached (65%, 55% and 46%) respectively.