Research Article
In praise of sport: Promoting sport participation as a mechanism of health among persons with a disability

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Abstract

Background

Achieving and maintaining health are no less important to people with a disability than they are to anyone else; it is just typically more challenging. This report explores sport as a mechanism of health for people with a disability. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) is used to frame the analysis and discussion of the narratives of 12 women and men with a disability who participate in sport.

Objective

The goal was to describe how participating in sport, broadly defined, helps persons with a disability achieve and maintain health and health-related components of well-being. The ICF was used to frame a secondary analysis and discussion of participant narratives.

Methods

Participants with physical or sensory disabilities responded to a request for participation in in-depth interviews to explore their sport participation; snowball sampling was used to ensure maximum variation in demographic characteristics. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a grounded theory approach. A secondary analysis was conducted that focused on the relationship of the data categories to the ICF.

Results

Sport benefits included enhanced functional capacity, health promotion, relationship development, increased optimism, and inclusion in meaningful life activities and roles. Health professionals were vital in introducing and encouraging people with disabilities to participate in sport.

Conclusions

Sport is a valuable and promising mechanism for fostering physical and emotional health and building valuable social connections. Health professionals, in concert with individual, family, and community members, may use the framework of the ICF to guide their clinical and educational reasoning for enhancing sport participation among persons with a disability.

Section snippets

Sport

Sport is a universally relevant context for health. Historically, the physical, psychological, and sociocultural benefits of sport have resulted in its inclusion in therapeutic and rehabilitation programs [9], [10]. The disability rights movements of the 20th century prompted legislation that included equal opportunity in physical activity and sport. The United Nations included recreation and sport as one of eight targeted areas for worldwide equalization of opportunities for persons with

The ICF

The United Nations Inter-Agency Task Force on Sport for Development and Peace [18] stated that the positive correlation between sport and health required that sport become a priority in government policies and with concerned stakeholders at all levels. The Task Force, as well as other internationally focused organizations such as the International Paralympic Committee, has called for the application of a common framework for sport development that draws together a wide range of stakeholders to

Methods

Data for this secondary analysis using the ICF framework reported herein were originally collected in May 2006 (B. Wilhite, J. Shank, unpublished data, 2006). The intent of the original analysis was to explore the physical recreation and sport participation of persons with a disability and the factors influencing these experiences. This exploration was designed to record the individuals' experiences and their process of involvement in sport.

During the original analysis, various dimensions of

Body functions and structures

In successful health achievement, the components of body functions and structures, activities and participation, and contextual factors operate in a coordinated and interrelated fashion and may overlap. Therefore, narrative examples featured in the following sections may not be discrete representations of the component. For practical purposes, however, these components are presented and discussed as separate entities. With an appreciation for the full context of the interviews, a text example

Summary and conclusion

Sport is a significant mechanism for fostering physical and emotional health and building valuable social connections. Twelve individuals provided answers to questions of how sport can benefit body functions and structure, enhance capacity and performance, and facilitate participation have been obtained. These benefits include the major categories of enhanced functional capacity, health promotion, relationship development, increased optimism, and inclusion in meaningful life activities and

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  • Financial disclosure: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare. This work was supported by a grant from the College of Health Professions, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

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