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The theory of planned behavior is a psychological framework designed to examine the relationship between beliefs and volitional behaviors such as physical activity engagement. The purpose of this article was to evaluate the published empirical literature on the use of the theory of planned behavior in the context of physical activity beliefs and behaviors of individuals with disabilities. Electronic-database searches were conducted to identify relevant articles published between 1990 and 2018, yielding 11 articles that met all criteria for inclusion. Data such as population, measures, research design, and results were extracted from qualifying studies. Article quality was addressed using modified versions of the National Institutes of Health’s Quality Assessment Tools. In keeping with the theory of planned behavior model, major findings indicate that intention to be physically active has the strongest relationship with physical activity behavior, while the predictive usefulness of belief factors was mixed, among individuals with disabilities.

The purpose of this study was to adopt an explicitly intersectional approach to examine the embodied perspectives of males with visual impairments about physical education. An interpretative phenomenological analysis research approach was used, and six adults (18–33 years) who identified as males with visual impairments acted as participants. The primary sources of data were semistructured, audiotaped, telephone interviews and reflective field notes. Thematic development utilized a four-step interpretative phenomenological analysis-guided analytical process. Based on the data analysis, the following three interrelated themes emerged: (a) “I didn’t feel very integrated”: Noninclusionary experiences based on blindness; (b) “Oh great, where’s my cane now?”: Bullying, blindness, and maleness; and (c) “Okay, just do what you can”: Competitive culture glass ceiling. The themes highlight several issues that have been faced by males with visual impairments, which should be considered by physical education and adapted physical education personnel to enhance the quality of education for this population.

The purpose of this study was to examine reactivity to accelerometer measurement in children with visual impairments (VI), their sighted siblings, and their parents. A sample of 66 participants (including 22 children with VI, 22 siblings, and 22 parents) completed a demographic survey and wore triaxial accelerometers for at least 4 consecutive days for 8 hr. An analysis of covariances with repeated measures was conducted, controlling for participant gender. Children with VI had 8.1% less moderate to vigorous physical activity time on Day 1 than Days 2–4 average. Their sighted siblings and parents had 7.8% and 7.1% more moderate to vigorous physical activity time on Day 1 than their Days 2–4 average, respectively. The reactivity percentage for parents and children without VI is consistent with existing literature. However, an inverse reactivity for children with VI was found, which is a unique contribution to the literature and will have implications for researchers using accelerometers for this population.

The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning that first-year adapted physical education teachers with a master’s degree ascribed to their occupational socialization experiences. An interpretative phenomenological analysis research approach was used, and occupational socialization theory was adopted as the theoretical framework. Five teachers participated in this study. The sources of data were a semistructured focus group interview, semistructured one-to-one interviews, and reflective interview notes. Thematic development involved a three-step analysis process informed by the research approach. Three themes were constructed: (a) interactions with individuals with disabilities and activity experiences, (b) recruitment of adapted physical education teacher education students, and (c) graduate training and initial workplace experiences. The constructed themes provide unique insight into how teachers are socialized into adapted physical education and the meaning they ascribe to various socialization experiences, such as the limited impact that interactions with individuals with disabilities had on the decision to pursue this career.

The purpose of this article was to review published research literature on physical activity for school-age individuals with visual impairments by describing study characteristics and major findings. Keyword searches were used to identify articles from electronic databases published from 1982 to June 2013. Eighteen articles met all inclusion criteria, and relevant data such as participants, visual-impairment levels, theory, measurement, and dependent variables were extracted from them. Of the 18 studies, 5 were descriptive, 6 correlational, and 7 were interventions. Only 4 studies explicitly stated a theoretical or conceptual framework. Major findings suggest that low physical activity levels of school-age individuals with visual impairments may be related to perceived participation barriers including the availability of appropriate opportunities rather than visual acuity or educational setting.

There are basic philosophical and paradigmatic assumptions that guide scholarly research endeavors, including the methods used and the types of questions asked. Through this article, kinesiology faculty and students with interests in adapted physical activity are encouraged to understand the basic assumptions of applied behavior analysis (ABA) methodology for conducting, analyzing, and presenting research of high quality in this paradigm. The purposes of this viewpoint paper are to present information fundamental to understanding the assumptions undergirding research methodology in ABA, describe key aspects of single-subject research designs, and discuss common research designs and data-analysis strategies used in single-subject studies.

The purpose of this article is to review qualitative inquiries examining the perspectives of students with disabilities toward physical education (PE) published from 2014 to 2019, as an update to the 2015 review by Haegele and Sutherland. Keyword searches were used to identify articles from nine electronic databases, and seven articles met all inclusion criteria. The seven selected articles were subjected to a narrative analysis, and three thematic clusters emerged: (a) an “inconvenience”: the PE teacher’s influence on quality of experience, (b) “we play together and I like it”: friendships central to the quality of PE experience, and (c) “no lift access to the gym”: barriers to successful participation. Findings from this review support the notion that students with disabilities may have positive experiences in PE if they are offered appropriate modifications and accommodations and are provided with increased kind and supportive interactions with staff and peers.

Purpose: This study aims to (a) examine elementary school students’ health-related fitness knowledge growth under one curriculum condition and (b) examine the impacts of student/school-level factors on health-related fitness knowledge and its growth rate in physical education. Method: We used an observational, longitudinal repeated-measures design, and conducted analyses on an existing dataset. Participants were 7,479 third, fourth, and fifth graders (48.9% girls) from 152 elementary schools. Measures were a knowledge test and sex at the student level, and socioeconomic data, academic performance, and student–faculty ratio at the school level. We ran three-level hierarchical linear models on the data. Results: Fitness knowledge growth was found to form a quadratic curve from third through fifth grades. School-level academic performance was positively associated with fitness knowledge. Sex was not associated with fitness knowledge or knowledge growth rate. Discussion: These findings contribute to the understanding of health-related fitness knowledge growth among elementary students.

The purpose of this article is to examine the content of previously published empirical literature utilizing self-efficacy theory with regard to physical education teachers’ perceived self-confidence to teach students with disabilities in general physical education. Keyword searches were used to identify relevant literature from electronic databases published from 2000 to 2022. Twenty-four articles, from 11 countries, met all inclusion criteria, and relevant data regarding participants, theory, measurement, research design, and dependent variables were extracted. Of the 24 studies, nine were survey validation, eight were experimental, six were cross-sectional, and one was mixed-methods design. Major findings across the examined studies indicate that teachers’ perceptions of training, amount of experience, and support from personnel significantly influence their self-efficacy toward teaching students with disabilities.