Effect of student-related factors on their attitudes towards peers with disabilities in physical education: evidence from elementary schools in China

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study aims to examine the general and sport-specific attitudes of elementary school students towards including students with disabilities in physical education and identifying student-related variables that determine such attitudes. A total of 872 students ranged from eight to 13 years old (461 boys and 411 girls) from six elementary schools in Shanghai participated in the study. The Children’s Attitudes towards Integrated Physical Education – Revised Scale (CAIPE-R) was utilized to measure students’ general and sport-specific attitudes. The Chinese students showed unfavourable general and sport-specific attitudes towards PE inclusion. Several student-related variables, such as being female and having a student with disabilities in PE classes, were positively associated with the general attitude of students, whereas being competitive was negatively related to the general attitude. These variables explained 13.2% of attitude variance. Being female, having a student with disabilities in regular classes, and having a student with disabilities in PE classes were positively related to the sport-specific attitude of students and explained 4.7% of attitude variance. The study has important implication for PE teaching, such as providing inclusive cooperative PE settings and opportunities of positive interaction for students with and without disabilities.