Psychosocial Aspects of Youth Disability Sport

Abstract

Psychosocial aspects of participation in youth disability sport were examined using social-cognitive theory and the sport commitment model. An international sample of athletes with disabilities (N = 112) reported high levels of sport commitment and sport enjoyment, perceived physical ability, and sport friendship quality. They perceived their parents to provide moderately strong levels of encouragement of their sport participation. Correlational analyses indicated moderate to strong relationships among sport commitment, sport enjoyment, and perceived physical ability. Sport commitment, parental encouragement, and sport friendship quality were only somewhat related. Regression analyses indicated that enjoyment was a significant predictor (i.e., 43% of the variance) of sport commitment. The sport experience was a positive one for these athletes and enjoyment is likely a critical motivational factor in promoting a continued desire to remain in sport.

An in-Depth Investigation of a Model Sport Program for Athletes with a Physical Disability

“…Finally, since it has been suggested that sport may provide an effective avenue to combat the discrimination and stigma commonly experienced by individuals with disabilities (Giacobbi, Stancil, Hardin, & Bryant, 2008), research within this setting is warranted. Fortunately, there is growing support for the notion that sport can be a fertile developmental context for youth with disabilities (e.g., Kristén, Patriksson, & Fridlund, 2002;Martin, 2006). Previous research suggests that sport can have a positive influence on youth's development of new physical and social skills (Groff & Kleiber, 2001).…”

“…While previous research provides valuable insight into the types of positive developmental outcomes that may be acquired through sport, the existing literature predominantly focuses on the sport experiences of able-bodied athletes. Studies examining the sport experiences of athletes with disabilities are relatively limited in comparison (Martin, 2006).…”

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While previous research highlights the important benefits that sport participation can have for youth development, limited research has examined the sport experiences of athletes with disabilities (Martin, 2006). The purpose of this study was to describe the sport experiences of athletes with physical disabilities in a model swim program that has been widely recognized for the development of positive values in athletes.

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Fitness, Fun and Friends through Participation in Preferred Physical Activities: Achievable for Children with Disabilities?

“…The findings are presented as means, standard deviations (SD), medians and ranges, which gave numbers that could be used across the categories (Imms, 2008). The relative indicator of participation frequency also indicates the mean amount of time that the children spent in the different activity categories (King et al, 2004;2006). Participation frequency in skill-based activities was somewhat lower than participation in physical activities.…”

“…Martin (2006) The activity performed by the most Norwegian children was walking or hiking (85,9 %, Table 4). Although this activity is not categorised as a physical leisure activity on the CAPE or the PAC, it is still relevant among physical activities in a Norwegian context because it gives a typical picture of participation in physical activity for Norwegian children.…”