Investigation of Sports Participation Motivation in Disabled Individuals In Terms of Various Variables

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of various factors on the sports participation motivation of individuals with disabilities. A total of 206 participants with different types of disabilities and demographic characteristics volunteered for the study. Data was collected through a Google form, which consisted of two parts. The first part included 8 personal questions developed by the researcher, covering topics such as age, gender, education level, financial income level, sports participation history, sports background, health insurance status, and disability type. The second part of the form included the Sports Participation Motivation Scale for Disabled Individuals, developed by Demir and İlhan (2019). The data was analyzed using IBM SPSS 22.0, with frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and Cronbach's alpha calculations. The normality of the data was tested using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk tests, which indicated that the data did not follow a normal distribution. As a result, non-parametric tests were used: The Mann-Whitney U test for variables with two levels, and the Kruskal-Wallis H test for variables with three or more levels. The analysis found no significant relationship between sports participation motivation and gender or education level. However, significant findings emerged in relation to other variables and their impact on the overall scale and its sub-dimensions. Specifically, it was concluded that variables such as individuals' sports history, active sports participation, financial income level, and type of disability play a significant role in motivating disabled individuals to engage in sports.