Sport as a Leisure Occupation in Occupational Therapy Literature: A Scoping Review.

Abstract

The focus of occupational therapy is often on personal care, life skills, and daily living. Sport, as a type of leisure activity, can also provide benefits to health and well-being. Occupational therapy practitioners should therefore promote the role of sport in the lives of clients. To investigate the extent, range, and nature of peer-reviewed occupational therapy literature investigating sport as a leisure occupation. The following databases were searched: Embase, MEDLINE, OTseeker, PsycINFO, PubMed, and SPORTDiscus. We identified published studies investigating competitive sport in occupational therapy research or practice. Included studies investigated adult participants (age ≥18 yr) participating in sport, had a clear occupational therapy input, and were written in the English language. Six studies met the inclusion criteria. Only 2 of the 6 studies identified through the search strategy were conducted after 2004, diagnosis and outcome measures varied widely, and sport as a leisure occupation was found to have positive individual outcomes. Opportunities exist to investigate sport as a leisure occupation and its involvement in occupational therapy practice. Future research may contribute to positive outcomes and experiences for clients who receive occupational therapy. This scoping review describes literature about sport as an occupation and highlights the opportunities for practitioners and researchers to incorporate sport as a leisure occupation.