Title: The Comparison of Elite Disabled Athletes, Former Athletes and Non-athletes on Self-Efficacy and Aspects of Physical Self
Abstract: PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare quality of life (QOL), self efficacy towards physical abilities, and likelihood of being physically active between current and former elite disabled athletes and disabled non-athletes. METHODS: To obtain subjects from our athletic population 200 surveys with letters of informed consent were mailed-out to Paralympic athletes and 200 to the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes. For our non-athletic population 200 surveys with letters of informed consent were mailed-out to each of the following organizations: United Cerebral Palsy, American Council of the Blind, United Spinal Association, and the Amputee Coalition of America. Three groups were formed for comparisons: current athletes (CA) (mean ± SD: 32.81 ± 10.38 yrs; n=71), former athletes (FA) (mean ± SD: 41.47 ± 12.37 yrs; n=19), and non-athletes (NA) (mean ± SD: 51.25 ± 15.1 yrs; n=122). Surveys included questions on age and athletic status, as well as the World Health Organization's Quality of Life - Brief (WHOQOL-BREF), ISP-6b physical self, and Confidence (self-efficacy) surveys. A Oneway ANOVA with a Tukey's HSD Post Hoc was used to detect differences between groups. RESULTS: CA had significantly higher scores (p ≤ 0.05) on all 5 areas of confidence towards physical activity (Confidence self-efficacy survey) compared to NA. The FA scored significantly higher than the NA (p ≤ 0.05) on 3 of the 5 areas of confidence towards being physically active (Tired; p ≤ 0.05, Bad mood; p ≤ 0.05, Raining/Snowing; p ≤ 0.05). CA scored significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) on all 5 measures of confidence in physical abilities (ISP-6b physical self) compared to NA, while FA were significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) on 2 of the 5 areas (physical strength and sports competencies) compared to NA. On all 5 domains of QOL, CA scored higher (p ≤ 0.05) than NA. Furthermore, FA were significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) on 1 of the domains (physical) compared to NA. CONCLUSIONS: CA and FA are more likely to engage in exercise, have greater confidence in their physical abilities, and report higher qualities of life compared to NA. Since our findings indicate that disabled athletes tend to be more physically active than disabled non-athletes; future research could look at potential differences in morbidity and rehabilitation recovery rates, as well as longevity.