Scheduled for Research Consortium Pedagogy II Poster Session, Thursday, April 27, 2006, 1:15 PM - 2:45 PM, Convention Center: Exhibit Hall Poster Area I


Research Literature in Physical Education Pedagogy: An Analysis for the Decade From 1995–2004

Pamela Hodges Kulinna1, Kristin Scrabis2, Stephen Kodish1 and Stephen Silverman2, (1)Arizona State University, Mesa, AZ, (2)Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY

The research literature of a field provides a record of published work and accumulated knowledge. For those producing research, the journal where it is published, whether the article is cited by others, and the perceptions of those journals may have consequences for promotion, tenure, and merit raises. While there have been a few systematic analyses of the research literature in physical education pedagogy, these have tended to have a limited focus. The purpose of this study was to provide a detailed analysis of the research literature in physical education. Using previously employed definitions, a data base was created of published research and research-based scholarship that focused on teaching, teacher education, and curriculum for the years 1995 to 2004. Multiple strategies were used to identify articles: (a) computer searches; (b) electronic and paper table of contents and abstracts were read for identified journals; (c) searches were completed on previously published researchers; and (d) previous research on the research literature was double checked. Articles only were included if they reported research or were research-based (e.g., review article, or methodological paper). Using a predefined procedure that included reading the abstract, the complete citation was entered into the data base and was categorized into one of three journal types: (a) physical education; (b) kinesiology; or (c) education and social science. An analysis of the citations in the data base was completed by cross-tabulation. The 1617 physical education pedagogy papers from 1995 to 2004 were published in 86 different journals. Most papers (n = 890) were published in physical education journals, with 561 published in kinesiology journals and 166 in education and social science journals. The physical education journals publishing the most papers were Journal of Teaching Physical Education (16.20% of the total), British Journal of Teaching Physical Education (8.57%), and the European Physical Education Review (5.57%). Quest (7.61%), Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport (4.51%), and Measurement in Physical Education and Exercise Science (3.67%) published the most papers among kinesiology journals. Only two education or social science journals (Journal of Applied Social Psychology [n = 12] and Teaching and Teacher Education [n = 10] published 10 or more papers during the 10 year period). There also was a trend indicating the number of papers increased most years from 1995 to 2004. The results provide an interesting and detailed insight into the pedagogy literature from which other analyses can occur.
Keyword(s): research

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