Parents' intentions toward including their children with visual impairments in physical activities.

Purpose: Physical activity participation is essential for the healthy development of basic locomotor skills and for the overall wellbeing of children. Unfortunately, for children with visual impairments the opportunities to engage in physical activity are limited compared with their peers without disabilities. The purpose of this study was to determine and analyze the intentions of parents to include their children with visual impairments, as well as their entire family in physical activities after participating in a physical activity intervention.Methods: This descriptive-qualitative study was situated in the theory of planned behavior. On completion of a series of workshops, 10 parents took part in individual semi-structured interviews that were subsequently transcribed and analyzed using a thematic line-by-line analysis.Results: Through the data analysis three major themes emerged: (a) increased confidence, (b) influence on future intentions, and (c) conditional intentions.Conclusions: Results revealed that the physical activity intervention provided parents with an opportunity to engage their child in physical activities and to gain a deeper understanding of their child's disability. Consequently, the intervention enhanced parent's perceived teaching abilities and skills regarding physical activity.Implications for rehabilitationResults of this study demonstrated that a physical activity intervention have the potential to enhance intentions to engage in physical activity among children with visual impairments and their parents.As a result of this study, parents acquired the skills necessary to confidently engage their children in physical activity.The current physical activity intervention provided parents with an opportunity to engage their child in physical activities and to gain a deeper understanding of their child's disability.Physical activity interventions targeting children with visual impairments and their parents should consider the inclusion of oral presentations combined with written supplements or written manuals, and physical activity equipment.

Understanding the Inclusiveness of Integrated Physical Education From the Perspectives of Adults With Visual Impairments.

The purpose of this study was to examine the perspectives of individuals with visual impairment toward inclusion and the inclusiveness of their integrated physical education experiences. A retrospective, qualitative-description research approach was used, and 10 adults (age 20-35 years) with visual impairments acted as the participants. The data sources included one-on-one telephone interviews and reflective interview notes. A theoretical thematic analysis approach was used to analyze the data. Three interrelated themes were identified: "I always felt like a misfit": a missing sense of belonging, acceptance, and value; "I felt very excluded, very pushed to the side": lack of access to activity participation; and "Even though it sucked, I do agree with it": preference for integrated settings. Collectively, the participants recalled that experiencing feelings of inclusion during physical education were rare. Despite this, they expressed a perceived importance of being integrated in contexts with their peers.

Physical activity participation among families of children with visual impairments and blindness.

PURPOSE: Physical activity (PA) provides multiple benefits to children with visual impairments (VI) and their families. However, the empirical literature base is underdeveloped on how family PA experiences impact participation for children with VI. The purpose of this study was two-fold; that is: (a) to explore why families with children with VI seek out and participate in PA, and (b) to describe the strategies and supports needed by families of children with VI to improve PA participation. METHOD: The research method was descriptive-qualitative positioned in the theoretical framework of the theory of planned behavior. Participants were parents of children with VI (n = 10) who took part in one-on-one semi-structured telephone interviews. Interview recordings were transcribed and analyzed using a thematic line-by-line analysis. RESULTS: Three salient, recurrent, and interrelated themes emerged from the data analyses. These themes were: (a) committed, (b) challenged, and (c) access. CONCLUSIONS: Findings revealed that parents valued PA, but they lacked the skills to teach and advocate for their children regarding PA. As a consequence, parents voiced the need for a support system that would allow their families to be more physically active. Implications for Rehabilitation Results of this study demonstrated that parents valued physical activity, but they lacked the skills necessary to confidently engage their children in physical activity. Physical activity interventions are needed to enhance the quality of life of children with visual impairments and their families. Physical activity programs and interventions are most likely to enhance intentions to engage in physical activity among children with visual impairments and their parents. Results demonstrated that parents of children with visual impairments were interested to work side-by-side with physical activity professionals to enhance recreational physical activity opportunities available to their children.

Parents' Beliefs About Physical Activity for Their Children With Visual Impairments.

Despite having the desire to become physically active as a family, parents of children with visual impairments often lack the skills and resources needed to provide appropriate physical activities (PAs) for their children. The purpose of this study was to explore the intentions of parents of children with visual impairments toward including their children in PAs after participating in a PA program. In this descriptive qualitative study, the participants were 10 parents of children with visual impairments. A series of workshops were designed to provide parents with the skills and resources needed to promote PA for their family. Upon completion of the workshops, parents took part in one-on-one semistructured interviews that were subsequently transcribed and analyzed using a thematic line-by-line process. Two interdependent themes emerged from the data analyses: (a) eye-opening experiences and (b) transformed, more hopeful, and optimistic outlook. The results revealed that through the PA intervention, parents learned teaching strategies that were intended to increase their PA opportunities and garnered resources that allowed them to teach their children to participate in PA.

Beliefs about physical activity and sedentary behaviors of adults with visual impairments.

BACKGROUND: When exploring reasons why individuals with visual impairments (VI) may or may not engage in physical activity (PA) or sedentary behaviors (SB), theoretically grounded research on the determinants of these behaviors is scarce. OBJECTIVE/HYPOTHESIS: Situated in the theory of planned behavior (TpB), the purposes of this study were to: (a) develop a theoretically-sound scale, Beliefs about Physical and Sedentary Behaviors-Visual Impairment (BAPS-VI), to determine if the constructs of TpB are useful in predicting PA and SBs of adults with VI; (b) analyze their beliefs about PA and SBs; and (c) determine which TpB constructs are the best predictors of PA behaviors. METHODS: Data were collected from adults with VI (n = 209, 65.5% women) using on-line survey methodology. Following reliability estimation, the PA and SB items were reduced using separate Principal Components analyses to examine the underlying dimension of the BAPS-VI in relation to TpB. A hierarchical regression model was used to determine what factors predicted self-reports of minutes of PA. RESULTS: Results supported the theoretical framework of the measure and explained 75% of the variance for intention to engage in PA and SB items, respectively. Six new variables, intention, and demographic data were then regressed on physical activity scores with only intention to engage in PA (ß = 0.30, p < 0.01) remaining as a significant predictor of physical activity. CONCLUSIONS: The development of the theoretically driven measure and results of this study can inform future research focusing on exploring PA and SBs of adults with VI.

Daily physical activity behavior patterns of Hispanic adolescents in Puerto Rico.

BACKGROUND: There is limited evidence on physical activity patterns among Hispanic adolescents in Puerto Rico. This restricts opportunities to implement effective interventions and policies to increase physical activity in schools. The purpose of this study was to examine the physical activity behaviors of adolescents attending middle and high schools in Puerto Rico based on a compendium of moderate to vigorous physical activities including walking, jogging or running, bicycling, sports and more. A secondary purpose was to examine group differences as a function of gender and school level. METHOD: A cross-sectional survey research design was used. Students (N = 637) attending public middle and high schools completed a Visual 7-Day Physical Activity Recall survey. Both descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted to describe the sample and to determine group differences. RESULTS: Puerto Rican adolescents' levels of physical activity decreased throughout the week. Only a small proportion of them reached at least 60 minutes everyday of the week. Differences were found between middle and high school students' daily and weekly participation in physical activities. CONCLUSIONS: Most adolescents do not engage in sufficient physical activity. IMPLICATIONS: IMPLICATIONS of the results are discussed and recommendations are articulated for policy makers, educators, and other professionals.

Exploring the meaning of parental involvement in physical education for students with developmental disabilities.

The purpose of this phenomenological inquiry was to explore the experiences and meaning of parental involvement in physical education from the perspectives of the parents of students with developmental disabilities. The stories of four mothers of elementary aged children (3 boys, 1 girl), two mothers and one couple (mother and father) of secondary-aged youth (1 girl, 2 boys) with developmental disabilities, were gathered by using interviews, photographs, school documents, and the researcher's journal. Bronfenbrenner's (2005) ecological system theory provided a conceptual framework to interpret the findings of this inquiry. Three themes emerged from thematic analysis: being an advocate for my child, understanding the big picture, and collaborative partnerships undeveloped in GPE. The findings lend additional support to the need for establishing collaborative partnerships in physical education between home and school environments (An & Goodwin, 2007; Tekin, 2011).

Reporting gender, race, ethnicity, and sociometric status: guidelines for research and professional practice.

The purpose of this study was to determine what trends exist in the identification and description of participants used in data-based studies published in Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly and the Journal of Teaching in Physical Education. Data were analyzed using frequency counts for journals and time periods from the 1980s to 2005 with chi-square tests on gender, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Results indicate, for example, that across the time span both journals published articles reporting males first over females, X2 (3) = 22.16, p < .001. Trend data also reveal that even today most data-based studies in these journals fail to report race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Findings are discussed with guiding principles for future research.

Perceptions of African American faculty in kinesiology-based programs at predominantly White American institutions of higher education.

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of African American faculty on their organizational socialization in kinesiology-based (i.e., sport pedagogy, exercise physiology, motor behavior, sport management/history) programs at predominantly White American institutions of higher education (PW-IHE). Participants were 9 African American tenure-track faculty members from various kinesiology-based programs at PW-IHE. Data were gathered via interviewing and analyzed within the framework of critical race theory (Ladson-Billings, 2000). Findings are presented using storytelling and thematic narratives. Interviews with the participants revealed four major recurring themes with regard to: (a) resources, opportunities, and power structures; (b) programmatic neglects and faculty mentoring needs; (c) social isolation, disengagement, and intellectual inferiority issues; and (d) double standards, marginalization, and scholarship biases. This study suggests that faculty and administrators at PW-IHE should develop sensitivity toward organizational socialization issues relevant to faculty of color.

Comparison of Practicum Types in Changing Preservice Teachers' Attitudes and Perceived Competence.

The purpose was to compare the effects of two practicum types (off campus and on campus) on physical education teacher education (PETE) students' attitudes and perceived competence toward teaching school-aged students with physical disabilities or moderate-severe mental retardation. PETE students, enrolled in a 15-week introductory adapted physical education (APE) course and involved in eight sessions of either off-campus (n = 22) or on-campus (n = 15) practicum experiences, completed Rizzo's (1993a) Physical Educators' Attitudes Toward Teaching Individuals with Disabilities-III (PEATID-III) two times. Analysis of pretest data revealed that groups were equated on gender, experience, attitude, and perceived competence. Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA revealed no significant difference between practicum types on posttest attitude and perceived competence measures. Attitude scores did not differ significantly from pretest to posttest. Perceived competence improved significantly from pretest to posttest under both practicum types. Implications for professional preparation are discussed.

Physical Educators' Judgments About Inclusion: A New Instrument for Preservice Teachers.

The purpose was to develop an instrument for use in physical education teacher education (PETE) programs that would yield valid evidence of the judgments of PETE preservice teachers toward the inclusion of students with disabilities into general physical education classes. Both the conceptualization that judgments represent the cognitive expressions of attitudes (Ajzen, 2001; Sherif & Hovland, 1961) and focus group discussions were used to create the Physical Educators' Judgments About Inclusion (PEJI) instrument. Following content validation procedures, we administered PEJI to 272 PETE preservice teachers. Subsequent principal component analysis to generate construct validity evidence indicated 15 items should be retained; they collectively explained 53% of the variance using a three-component model. Dimensions of the PEJI pertained to judgments about inclusion, acceptance, and perceived training needs. Alpha coefficients for the three subscales ranged from .64 to .88.