‘My perspective has changed on an entire group of people’: undergraduate students’ experiences with the Paralympic Skill Lab

Abstract

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to seek to understand and describe the experiences of university students taking part in the Paralympic Skill Lab (PSL) program in relation to shaping attitudes and perceptions of disability and disability sport. The researchers adopted an interpretivist ontology, where we attempted to make sense of our participants’ interpretations of their lived experiences in the PSL. Data from 35 students were collected via focus group interviews and reflective essays, and analyzed inductively using a three-step approach. Three interrelated themes were constructed based on the analysis that were related to the participants’ experience during the PSL event. In the first theme, ‘My mindset definitely changed’: The power of contact, participants described the manner in which PSL shifted their perspective on individuals with disabilities. The second theme, ‘This moved me so much to be the change’: A call to action, concerned participants desire to implement tangible, actionable intentions and plans as a result of participating in PSL. The third theme, ‘They can shine as much as normal athletes’: Expressions of ableism in the words of participants, depicts the ableist paradigm through which the participants ascribed meaning to their experience, showcasing an idealized notion of normal. These findings support assertions that participation in sport-based disability awareness programs can enhance participant knowledge, attitudes, and perspectives toward persons with disabilities and disability sport.