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Development and Validation of a Barriers to Physical Activity Scale for Adults with Visual Impairments

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Abstract

Research indicates that individuals with visual impairments tend not to meet the physical activity guidelines for health promotion. Existing literature has identified barriers to physical activity as having the potential to impact the physical activity engagement of this population. Most studies of barriers to physical activity among populations with visual impairments have used instruments developed for other groups. However, scholars within the field of adapted physical activity recommended the development and use of instruments designed to address the needs and characteristics of specific disability groups. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop and validate a brief scale designed to measure the magnitude of barriers to physical activity for use among adults with visual impairments. The instrument was developed in four phases: (a) item development, (b) content validity, (c) exploratory factor analysis, and (d) confirmatory factor analysis. Factor analyses yielded 12 items across three barrier factors (i.e., accessibility, personal, and transportation). The Barriers to Physical Activity for Adults with Visual Impairment scale is a valid and reliable measure of barriers to physical activity for this population.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge support provided by the School of Kinesiology at the University of Michigan and by the United States Office of Special Education Program training grant H325D160032.

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This work did not receive funding support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Kinesiology, University of Georgia, 330 River Rd, Athens, GA, 30602, USA

    T. N. Kirk

  2. Human Movement Science Department, Old Dominion University, 2016 Student Rec Center, Norfolk, VA, 23529, USA

    Justin A. Haegele & Xihe Zhu

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  1. T. N. Kirk
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  2. Justin A. Haegele
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  3. Xihe Zhu
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Correspondence to T. N. Kirk.

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All procedures were reviewed by and found to be in compliance with the standards of the second and third authors’ human subjects research institutional review board prior to data collection and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Kirk, T.N., Haegele, J.A. & Zhu, X. Development and Validation of a Barriers to Physical Activity Scale for Adults with Visual Impairments. J Dev Phys Disabil 33, 963–976 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-020-09782-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-020-09782-6

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