Adaptive Sports as Extraordinary Experiences: Findings from a Pilot Study

Authors

  • Derek Whaley Virginia Wesleyan University
  • Jasmine Townsend Clemson University
  • Christy Brown Clemson University
  • Ramon Zabriskie Brigham Young University
  • Nikki Entrup Wounded Warrior Project in San Antonio, TX

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18666/TRJ-2025-V59-I2-12728

Keywords:

adaptive sports, recreational therapy, extraordinary experiences, experience type framework, experience impact scale, therapeutic recreation

Abstract

A growing emphasis on experiences and their impacts o n participants is occurring among recreation scholars. The Experience Impact Scale (EIS) was developed based on the Experience Type Framework (ETF) to b etter measure the impact of recreation experiences. This study aimed to understand the experience of involvement in adaptive sports (AS) using the ETF and to identify elements of AS programs that facilitate extraordinary experiences. The study sample (n=140) consisted of individuals who had participated in AS programs for some period in their lifetime. Findings revealed AS experiences to be extraordinary and offer a list of 42 program characteristics that may facilitate these experiences. Ordinal logistic regression revealed three program characteristics and one demographic item that most predicted experience impact. Recommendations for recreational therapy practice and future research are discussed.

Downloads

Published

2025-05-14

Issue

Vol. 59 No. 2 (2025): Interprofessional Therapeutic Recreation/Recreational Therapy Practices and Education: Focus on Health and Quality of Life

Section

Research Papers

License

Sagamore Publishing LLC (hereinafter the “Copyright Owner”)

Journal Publishing Copyright Agreement for Authors

PLEASE REVIEW OUR POLICIES AND THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT, AND INDICATE YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS BY CHECKING THE ‘AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THIS COPYRIGHT NOTICE’ CHECKBOX BELOW.

I understand that by submitting an article to Therapeutic Recreation Journal, I am granting the copyright to the article submitted for consideration for publication in Therapeutic Recreation Journal to the Copyright Owner. If after consideration of the Editor of the Therapeutic Recreation Journal, the article is not accepted for publication, all copyright covered under this agreement will be automatically returned to the Author(s).

THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT

Assignment of Copyright

I hereby assign to the Copyright Owner the copyright in the manuscript I am submitting in this online procedure and any tables, illustrations or other material submitted for publication as part of the manuscript in all forms and media (whether now known or later developed), throughout the world, in all languages, for the full term of copyright, effective when the article is accepted for publication.

Reversion of Rights

Articles may sometimes be accepted for publication but later be rejected in the publication process, even in some cases after public posting in “Articles in Press” form, in which case all rights will revert to the Author.

Retention of Rights for Scholarly Purposes

I understand that I retain or am hereby granted the Retained Rights. The Retained Rights include the right to use the Preprint, Accepted Manuscript, and the Published Journal Article for Personal Use and Internal Institutional Use.

All journal material is under a 12 month embargo. Authors who would like to have their articles available as open access should contact Sagamore-Venture for further information.

In the case of the Accepted Manuscript and the Published Journal Article, the Retained Rights exclude Commercial Use, other than use by the author in a subsequent compilation of the author’s works or to extend the Article to book length form or re-use by the author of portions or excerpts in other works.

Published Journal Article: the author may share a link to the formal publication through the relevant DOI.

Author Representations

  • The Article I have submitted to the journal for review is original, has been written by the stated author(s) and has not been published elsewhere.
  • The Article was not submitted for review to another journal while under review by this journal and will not be submitted to any other journal.
  • The Article contains no libelous or other unlawful statements and does not contain any materials that violate any personal or proprietary rights of any other person or entity.
  • I have obtained written permission from copyright owners for any excerpts from copyrighted works that are included and have credited the sources in the Article.
  • If the Article was prepared jointly with other authors, I have informed the co-author(s) of the terms of this Journal Publishing Agreement and that I am signing on their behalf as their agent, and I am authorized to do so.