Research Trends in Adapted Physical Activity on the Base of Apao Journal (2006-2010)

Abstract

The present study attempted to identify the research trends in Adapted Physical Activity-APA. Documentary analysis was used to evaluate 99 research studies in APAQ from 2006 to 2010. The majority of publications examined psychosocial issues (29.29%), measurement/ assessment/ classification (20.20%), exercise science/ physical activity (14.14%), motor behavior, biomechanics (8.08%) and disability sports (21.21%). Samples of individuals with physical disabilities (17.89%), different disability categories (14.73%) and mental retardation/ intellectual disability (12.63%) were reported more often. For the quantitative vs qualitative distinction, 74 studies were classified as quantitative while 16 studies were qualitative. Validity and reliability reports appeared in 82 studies, while the majority of the sampling methods were purposive (21 studies), recruited (20 studies) and convenience (17 studies). With respect to theories the selfefficacy and self-determination were the most commonly reported. Overall, there is a trend for using theory to examine specific samples more in depth, through qualitative research, and a lower tendency to report analyses with sophisticated statistical software, randomized samples and generalization of findings. Academic scholars and researchers may consider the above conclusions when consulting with their graduate students and planning their future research endeavors in the APA field

A cross-disciplinary comparison of published articles: Adapted physical activity and special education

“…It should be noted that findings in regard to population of interest in this analysis conflict with recent findings by Karkaletsi et al (2012), which include overlapping time periods. These differences may be attributed to differences in subcategories as well as the five additional years of APAQ included in this analysis.…”

“…Also, while a recent analysis of publications found research in APAQ to be highly theoretical (Karkaletsi et al, 2012), this analysis found conflicting evidence which aligns with other previous publications and indicates a dearth of theoretical frameworks (e.g., . To enhance future research, those individuals in master's level or doctoral training programs should discuss theoretical/conceptual frameworks with students and suggest courses which introduce single subject designs to their graduate level students.…”

“…This is somewhat surprising because of the aforementioned arguments of APA researchers for the importance of theory-driven research (e.g., Cervantes & Taylor, 2011;Porretta & Sherrill, 2005). In addition, according to Karkaletsi et al (2012), results of a recent documentary analysis indicated that the use of theoretical/ conceptual frameworks in APAQ had been increasing in recent years. These researchers reported that over 57% of the APAQ articles over a recent five year period were grounded in a theory.…”

“…As an academic area, APA has seen a rapid expansion influenced by developments in both kinesiology and education (Hutzler, 2011;Sherrill, 2004). As such, many researchers have examined the development of APA by analyzing research and publication trends through documentary analyses of published materials (i.e., Karkaletsi et al, 2012;Porretta & Sherrill, 2005;Reid & Broadhead, 1995;Reid & Prupas, 1998;Reid & Stanish, 2003;Zhang, deLisle, & Chen, 2006). These analyses discuss the current trends in research and predict future directions in APA.…”

“…Reid and Stanish (2003) surveyed articles from APAQ and Clinical Kinesiology to determine whether APA can be considered an independent discipline or field of study. Most recently, Karkaletsi et al (2012) identified research trends in APA by analyzing five years of articles published in APAQ (from 2006 to 2010).…”