Physical Activity for People With Autism Spectrum Disorder
Abstract
People with disabilities are significantly less physically active than are people without disabilities (CDC, 2017). There is significant research on the benefits of physical exercise for people with a disability (Darcy, Lock, & Taylor, 2017), but little is focused on specific disabilities, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study is to look specifically at how physical activity (PA) affects those with ASD. Most sport participation research focuses on the constraints of participation in persons with disability in general (Darcy et al., 2017). Each disability has specific needs and constraints that need to be considered. When researchers focus on people with ASD, they typically examine how physical activity affects ASD physically (Bhat, 2014; Menear, 2014) or at the relationship between physical activity and behaviors, like screen time (Bandini, Must, Phillips, Curtin, 2015). In my project, I analyze factors that influence whether healthcare providers, as influential people in the lives of people with ASD, recommend physical activity. My thesis for this study is that physical activity will have many benefits for persons living with ASD, and that these benefits will influence health care providers’ recommendations for physical activity for persons with ASD. In this study, I use the social ecological model in order to examine the multilevel barriers associated with physical activity and ASD. These barriers are then used in order to analyze healthcare providers’ positions on whether or not they recommend PA for persons with ASD. The theoretical framework of this study stems from the fact that people with disabilities are significantly less physically active than are people without disabilities. The purpose of this study is to look specifically at how physical activity (PA) affects those with ASD, and why healthcare providers should recommend it to patients. In this study, I focus on the benefits and detriments of being physically active for people with ASD in order to create more physical activity (PA) opportunities for persons with ASD. Through use of the social ecological model to survey nurses on how likely they are to recommend PA for people with ASD, the importance of including it in the lifestyles and community of ASD can be seen. Specifically, I survey nurses and examine their impressions of the societal, community, relationship, and individual factors that affect PA opportunities, then the nurses’ likelihood of recommending PA. I examine the associations among these variables to understand which factors are most likely affect recommending PA. By looking at the benefits/detriments of PA, existing and future community programs can be improved for those with ASD.
Citation
Tiner, Sarah Alice (2019). Physical Activity for People With Autism Spectrum Disorder. Undergraduate Research Scholars Program. Available electronically from https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /194540.