Background/Purpose:
Current literature suggests that the attitudes and intentions of students without disabilities play a critical role in the successful inclusion of students with disabilities in general physical education (GPE). A contemporary theoretical framework used to examine the attitudes and intentions in inclusive educational contexts is the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) (Ajzen, 1991). The purpose of this study was to develop a psychometrically-sound scale, based on the TPB, which measures the intentions of elementary school children without disabilities to play with a hypothetical peer with a physical disability in GPE and to provide evidence of content validity, reliability, and initial factor structure for the scale.
Method:
The pilot version of the Children's Intentions to Play with Peers with Disabilities in Elementary School Physical Education (CIPPD-EPE) and a background questionnaire were administered to a convenience sample of 272 fourth and fifth grade students (138 boys and 134 girls) in their GPE classes. Content validity for the CIPPD-EPE was established by seven content experts.
Analysis/Results:
Results of an exploratory factor analysis revealed four factors (Behavioral Beliefs, Normative Beliefs, Control Beliefs, and Behavioral Intention), explaining 54% of variance in the model. All factors were inter-correlated (p < .01). Internal consistency ranged between .82-.93. All factors were significantly correlated with intention (p < .01), with behavioral beliefs having the strongest correlation (r = 69).
Conclusions:
Overall, the current study provides preliminary support for using the TPB to measure the intentions of elementary school children without disabilities to play with a peer with a disability in GPE.
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