Using Wheelchair Sports to Complement Disability Awareness Curriculum among College Students

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a campus-wide intramural wheelchair sports program on attitudes toward people with disabilities. The sample consisted of 126 participants at a large, western university. A quasi-experimental pre-post design was used. Results indicated that there was a significant decrease in discomfort in interaction with people with disabilities after participation in the program. Additional findings indicated that recreation majors who were required to have some disability awareness training in their coursework had statistically lower pre- and post-test scores than other majors and demonstrated the greatest change in attitude toward people with disabilities. Implications and recommendations are discussed.