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Full-Text Articles in Other Rehabilitation and Therapy

Empowerment Through Creating An Adaptive Sports And Recreation Program For Persons With Disabilities, Sarah Kadri, Angela Labrie Blackwell Dec 2025

Empowerment Through Creating An Adaptive Sports And Recreation Program For Persons With Disabilities, Sarah Kadri, Angela Labrie Blackwell

Fall 2025 OTD Capstone Symposium

Adaptive sports and recreation (ASR) refers to recreational and competitive physical activities modified to be inclusive and accessible for persons with disabilities (PWD), adjusting equipment, rules, instruction, and environmental setup to support participation across a wide range of physical, cognitive, and sensory abilities. PWD often report feeling disempowered due to social stigma, inaccessible environments, and limited opportunities to make meaningful choices about leisure and community life. A lack of diverse and consistent ASR opportunities within communities collectively hinders participation and negatively impacts overall well-being. Utilizing the Person Environment Occupation Performance (PEOP) theoretical framework, this capstone project developed a 10-week swimming …


Curbing Fatal And Non-Fatal Drowning Deaths: An Effort To Reach Under-Resourced Children In Baltimore, Maryland, Ashton P. Christo, William D. Ramos Oct 2025

Curbing Fatal And Non-Fatal Drowning Deaths: An Effort To Reach Under-Resourced Children In Baltimore, Maryland, Ashton P. Christo, William D. Ramos

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Drowning remains a significant public health problem in the United States, with The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reporting approximately 4,000 drowning deaths annually. Children aged 1-4 face the highest risk, and African American children are disproportionately affected–7.6 times more likely to drown than white children (CDC, 2024). In a city on the East Coast that is predominantly African American, limited access to swimming lessons heightens the risk. To reduce drowning rates, a collaborative swimming program was established between a city high school and a public school enrichment program. The initiative provided essential water safety and swimming skills …


Teaching Swimming To Children With Disabilities: A Qualitative Analysis Of Swim Instructorstea, Stephanie S. Garcia-Hidalgo, Martin E. Block Oct 2025

Teaching Swimming To Children With Disabilities: A Qualitative Analysis Of Swim Instructorstea, Stephanie S. Garcia-Hidalgo, Martin E. Block

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

When teaching children with disabilities, swim instructors need to be able to assess the unique strengths and needs of each child to determine modifications needed to instruction, equipment, and the setting and then be flexible enough to make changes in real-time to ensure success for the child. Unfortunately, many swim instructors only work seasonally and have the occasional child with a disability, and as a result are likely to have limited training and experiences with children with disabilities. The purpose of this pilot qualitative study is to examine backgrounds, training, and experiences of six swim instructors who work with children …


Water Orientation Skills And Basic Safety And Swimming Skills Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Kelle L. Murphy, Min Liu Mar 2025

Water Orientation Skills And Basic Safety And Swimming Skills Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Kelle L. Murphy, Min Liu

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Drowning is the leading cause of death among individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The current study examined water orientation (i.e., comfort level), water safety, and beginning swimming skills of individuals with ASD of ages ranging from 3 to 13 years using the Aquatic Orientation Checklist (AOC) (Kilian et al., 1984). Data were collected during consecutive Fall and Spring semesters. A total of 23 children (n = 15 boys; n = 8 girls) volunteered for the study. Lessons were conducted twice a week for 10 weeks continuously and each lesson was 45 minutes in length. Overall, the swimming program had …


Attitudes And Self-Efficacy Of Swimming Coaches Towards The Inclusion Of Swimmers With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Eleftheria Kasagianni, Dimitrios Kokaridas, Panagiotis Varsamis, Vasilis Tsimaras Mar 2024

Attitudes And Self-Efficacy Of Swimming Coaches Towards The Inclusion Of Swimmers With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Eleftheria Kasagianni, Dimitrios Kokaridas, Panagiotis Varsamis, Vasilis Tsimaras

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes and self-efficacy of swimming coaches regarding the inclusion of swimmers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The sample consisted of 150 Greek swimming coaches with an average age of 29.58 years. Each participant completed the Swimming Coaches Attitudes towards Inclusion Questionnaire for perceptions assessment and the Biddle and Goudas (1997) self-efficacy questionnaire. The statistical analysis used SPSS 27 to calculate Cronbach’s alpha, Pearson product-moment correlations, independent t-tests, and ANOVA. The findings of the study showed that the swimming coaches expressed positive attitudes and a high percentage of perceived self-efficacy towards the …


Aquatics For Individuals With Disabilities: An Analysis Of Publication Trends, Susan J. Grosse Apr 2023

Aquatics For Individuals With Disabilities: An Analysis Of Publication Trends, Susan J. Grosse

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

This study investigates the published literature in the field of aquatics with disabilities; more specifically, it examines literature published during the most recent two decades, 2000 through 2019. Considerations include the content focus of published articles relating to aquatics with disabilities, distribution of articles over the specified time period, publication opportunities for authors, barriers as well as enhancements to development of literature in the field, and summary recommendations.


Towards A Globalised Vision Of Aquatic Competence, Rita F. Pinto, Juan Antonio Moreno Murcia Apr 2023

Towards A Globalised Vision Of Aquatic Competence, Rita F. Pinto, Juan Antonio Moreno Murcia

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Human interaction with the aquatic environment has always taken different forms to meet the needs of pleasure, survival, therapy or performance. The diversity of existing aquatic spaces presents itself as a challenge, due to their variety, dynamism, unpredictability and unrepeatable conditions. These factors potentiate an infinite number of possibilities for human response in interaction with the aquatic environment, with aquatic competence being the one that will be able to sustain all types of interaction. Thus, the aim of the proposal has been to present a new approach to the contextualisation of aquatic competence. After a literature review on the concept …


Revisiting The Metaphorical Concept Of “No Strokes First - All Strokes First”: Part One - Beginning Strokes, Robert Keig Stallman Ph.D., Alex Mwaipasi, Ebbe Laakso Horneman, Nils Olof Vikander, Bente Wäinösdatter Horneman Laakso, Haakon-Paavo Laakso Nysted, Toni Ongala Apr 2023

Revisiting The Metaphorical Concept Of “No Strokes First - All Strokes First”: Part One - Beginning Strokes, Robert Keig Stallman Ph.D., Alex Mwaipasi, Ebbe Laakso Horneman, Nils Olof Vikander, Bente Wäinösdatter Horneman Laakso, Haakon-Paavo Laakso Nysted, Toni Ongala

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

The aim of this article is to address the familiar question “Which swimming stroke should be taught first?” The discussion is usually focused on breaststroke versus crawl. Provoked by these naïve discussions of which stroke should be taught first (as if stroking equals swimming, which it emphatically does NOT), the question was answered metaphorically in an earlier article “No Stroke First – All Strokes First” (Stallman, 2008a). Here in Part I we identify and describe six strokes, all of which might be a candidate for any learners ‘very first’ stroke. We describe them as beginning strokes. Having identified and learned …


The Challenge Of Water Entries, Andrea S. Andrews, Shayne D. Baker Sep 2021

The Challenge Of Water Entries, Andrea S. Andrews, Shayne D. Baker

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

The authors presented a poster at the International Life Saving Foundation's World Conference on Drowning Prevention 2019 in Durban, South Africa titled, "Finding an Aquatic Voice," that was the basis for this article. The conference theme was "Growing Global Drowning Prevention Capacity,” and the aim of our poster’s contribution to the conference was to explore internal reasons for the variable capacity of water-wary persons to engage in water experiences which often manifest as a “water entry and exit conundrum." The paper provides critical decision points associated with these issues to encourage further reflective practice by aquatic professionals. The …


Staff Training In Aquatics For Individuals With Disabilities: The Quest, Susan J. Grosse May 2020

Staff Training In Aquatics For Individuals With Disabilities: The Quest, Susan J. Grosse

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Trained instructors in general programs have the ability and resources to initiate and follow through with developing water safe individuals who are capable swimmers. Specific staff training to prepare individuals to facilitate aquatic participation for individuals with disabilities is currently extremely limited. The purpose of this article is to examine the barriers to specialized staff training in aquatics for individuals with disabilities, to suggest necessary staff training content, and to propose topics for further research in the area of staff training. Seeking development of quality staff training programs for those working in aquatics for individuals with disabilities is the quest.


Aquatic Therapy Interventions And Disability: A Recreational Therapy Perspective, Jason Scott, Angela Wozencroft, Vincenzo Nocera, Kelsey Webb, Jodi Anderson, Avery Blankenburg, Darrien Watson, Sophie Lowe Apr 2020

Aquatic Therapy Interventions And Disability: A Recreational Therapy Perspective, Jason Scott, Angela Wozencroft, Vincenzo Nocera, Kelsey Webb, Jodi Anderson, Avery Blankenburg, Darrien Watson, Sophie Lowe

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Aquatic therapy interventions are critical for individuals with disabilities and the role of the therapist is just as critical for successful and effective interventions. The field of therapeutic recreation trains students to develop and implement evidence-based facilitation techniques including the use of aquatic therapy to assist in helping clients achieve a change in functional status. This review of the literature examined the impact of aquatic therapy interventions on a variety of disabilities including osteoarthritis, multiple sclerosis, Cerebral palsy, autism spectrum disorder, and mental health from a recreational therapy (RT) perspective. This review provides a variety of information on the positive …


The Assessment Of Swimming And Survival Skills: Is Your Programme Fit For These Purposes?, Paolo Di Paola Ba Oct 2018

The Assessment Of Swimming And Survival Skills: Is Your Programme Fit For These Purposes?, Paolo Di Paola Ba

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

No abstract provided.


Wearing Life Jackets While Swimming In Open Water, Elizabeth "Tizzy" Bennett, Linda Quan Md Oct 2018

Wearing Life Jackets While Swimming In Open Water, Elizabeth "Tizzy" Bennett, Linda Quan Md

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

No abstract provided.


Reestablishing A Culture Of Water Competency At An Hbcu, Knolan C. Rawlins Aug 2018

Reestablishing A Culture Of Water Competency At An Hbcu, Knolan C. Rawlins

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

African American children ages 5 – 19 years drown in swimming pools at rates of 5.5 times higher than those of whites (Gilchrist & Parker, 2014). Literature suggested culture is the culprit for this disparity. A fear of water dates to slavery (Pitts, 2007). After slavery was abolished, the memory of drowning remained part of the African American culture. In the twentieth century, the popularity of swimming grew with the increase in public pools. The era of the Jim Crow laws kept African Americans out of public pools (Pitts, 2007). Although the political landscape has shifted since the Jim Crow …


An Examination Between Swimming Ability, Gender, And Race- An Exploratory Investigation, Laynie E. Brown May 2014

An Examination Between Swimming Ability, Gender, And Race- An Exploratory Investigation, Laynie E. Brown

Honors College Theses

One of the leading causes of unintentional death worldwide is drowning. From 2005-2009, an estimated 3, 107 people in the United States over the age of fifteen died from drowning (Peden, Oyegbite, & Ozanne-Smith, 2008). Research has found higher amounts of drowning deaths to be males than females and African-American than Caucasian (Saluja et al., 2005). However, no significant differences have been found in real or perceived water competency between gender or age groups (Moran et al., 2012). Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine ability to swim between gender, race, and school classification of college students. Quantitative …


Motivations And Reasons For Exercising In Water: Gender And Age Differences In A Sample Of Spanish Exercisers, Juan Antonio Moreno Murcia, Celestina Martínez Galindo, Pablo Marcos Pardo Jan 2008

Motivations And Reasons For Exercising In Water: Gender And Age Differences In A Sample Of Spanish Exercisers, Juan Antonio Moreno Murcia, Celestina Martínez Galindo, Pablo Marcos Pardo

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

The purposes of this study were, on the one hand, to relate the reasons for exercising with self-determination and, on the other, to check gender and age differences with a sample of 311 exercisers in water. The data were collected using the Behavioral Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire–2 and Motives for Physical Activities Measure–Revised. A positive and significant correlation was seen between self-determination and the reasons for exercise, with self-determination predicting 22% by enjoyment and 8% by fitness/health reasons. Similarly, the multivariate analysis showed that the women had more self-determination than the men and that they also rated fitness/health, social, enjoyment, …