Exploring dignity among elite athletes with disabilities during a sport-focused disability awareness program

Abstract

ABSTRACT The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the meaning that elite athletes with disabilities ascribe to their participation in a sport-focused disability awareness program intended for undergraduate kinesiology majors. Dignity, which is generally understood to relate to self-esteem, worth, autonomy, and respect from others, was used as a conceptual framework to guide this inquiry. Participants were four elite athletes, three men and one woman, with physical disabilities who had served as Paralympic sport presenters and instructors during the disability awareness program. The primary sources of data for this project were semi-structured telephone interviews and associated interview notes. Transcribed interviews and notes were thematically analyzed using a five-step process. Data analysis revealed three themes which were presented as results. The first theme, ‘show us off’: showcasing elite Paralympic athletes, related to participants’ feelings of being showcased as elite athletes with skills and abilities during the program. The second theme, ‘treating us as people’: value and individuality in the disability awareness program, pertained to participants’ perceptions that they were viewed as unique individuals by program attendees. The final theme, ‘comes with the territory’: self-worth and self-advocacy, concerned participants’ perceived feelings of self-worth and autonomy as advocates for the Paralympic movement. Overall, participants described their experiences during the program as being dignity-supportive and did not report experiencing any forms of indignity throughout their involvement. While the majority of prior research into the area of disability awareness programs has focused on the benefits of such events for attendees without disabilities, this finding offers insight on their meaning for individuals with physical disabilities acting as experts or presenters.