Introduction
Method
Participants
Persons with an ID are eligible to participate in Special Olympics. A person is considered to have an IQ if that person satisfies the following requirements: (1) Typically an IQ score of approximately 70 or below; (2) Deficits in general mental abilities which limit and restrict participation and performance in one or more aspects of daily life such as communication, social participation, functioning at school or work, or personal independence, and; (3) Onset during the developmental period (before the age of 18 years). All individuals 8 years of age or older, who have an intellectual disability have access to SOO sport programs. Individuals who have multiple disabilities are also eligible to participate so long as one of the disabilities is an intellectual disability.
Overall N = 330 M (SD) or N (%) | ID only n = 235 M (SD) or N (%) | ID and ASD n = 95 M (SD) or N (%) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Child age | 16.78 (2.92) | 16.93 (2.82) | 16.40 (3.12) |
t(328) = 1.50, p = .13, d = .17 |
Child gender (% male) | 203 (62 %) | 129 (55 %) | 74 (78 %) |
Χ
2 (1) = 15.1 p < .001, Cramer’s V = .21
|
Level of competition
| ||||
Local | 267 (82 %) | 191 (82 %) | 76 (82 %) | |
Provincial | 48 (15 %) | 35 (15 %) | 13 (14 %) |
Χ
2 (2) = .38, p = .83, |
National/International | 11 (3 %) | 7 (3 %) | 4 (4 %) |
Cramer’s V = .03
|
Training in the last year
| ||||
None or a few times | 84 (26 %) | 61 (26 %) | 23 (25 %) | |
1–4 times per month | 149 (45 %) | 102 (43 %) | 47 (51 %) |
Χ
2 (2) = 1.59, p = .45, |
At least twice per week | 95 (29 %) | 72 (31 %) | 23 (25 %) |
Cramer’s V = .07 |
Total sports in 12 months | 2.3 (1.5) | 2.3 (1.5) | 2.3 (1.4) |
t(313) = .52, p = .60 |
Respondent source (% mothers) | 268 (82 %) | 195 (83 %) | 73 (77 %) |
Χ
2 (1) = 1.89, p = .17, Cramer’s V = .07 |
Geographical location
| ||||
Remote | 11(3 %) | 9 (4 %) | 2 (2 %) |
Χ
2 (3) = 1.09, p = .78, |
Rural | 82 (25 %) | 56 (24 %) | 26 (28 %) |
Cramer’s V = .06 |
Suburban | 141 (44 %) | 100 (44 %) | 41 (44 %) | |
Urban | 89 (28 %) | 65 (28 %) | 24 (26 %) | |
Respondent educational level
| ||||
High school or less | 63 (19 %) | 46 (20 %) | 17 (18 %) | |
College degree or equivalent | 121 (37 %) | 87 (37 %) | 34 (36 %) |
Χ
2 (2) = .34, p = .84, |
University degree | 144 (44 %) | 100 (43 %) | 44 (46 %) |
Cramer’s V = .03 |
Finances before taxes
| ||||
<49,000 | 48 (18 %) | 35 (18 %) | 13 (17 %) | |
50,000–99,999 | 117 (43 %) | 79 (41 %) | 38 (48 %) | |
100,000–149,999 | 82 (30 %) | 60 (31 %) | 22 (28 %) |
Χ
2 (3) = 1.57, p = .67, |
150,000 or greater | 27 (10 %) | 21 (11 %) | 6 (8 %) |
Cramer’s V = .08 |
Financial management
| ||||
Doing well | 137 (43 %) | 102 (45 %) | 35 (37 %) | |
Get by alright | 131 (41 %) | 90 (40 %) | 41 (44 %) |
Χ
2 (2) = 1.61, p = .45, |
Financial trouble | 54 (17 %) | 36 (16 %) | 18 (19 %) |
Cramer’s V = .07 |
Family difficulties | 3.26 (.48) | 3.29 (.49) | 3.21 (.47) | t(327) = 1.79, p = .08, d = .20 |
Recruitment
Measures
Adaptive Behavior
Sociocommunicative Ability
Functional Cognitive Ability
Involvement in Home, School, and Community
Thriving
ID only Mean rank; M (SD) | ID and ASD Mean rank; M (SD) | Mann–Whitney U z-score | |
---|---|---|---|
Competence: my child has the skills to succeed in school, in social situations with friends and adults, in play, and at home. My child knows how to behave and does what is needed to do well | 175.02; 3.29(1.11) | 140.32; 2.85(1.20) | −3.11, p = .002 |
Confidence: My child believes that he/she can succeed and do what is needed to do well in the family, in school, in social situations with friends and adults, in play and in other areas that are important to him/her (for example, sports, music, religious activities) | 174.63; 3.56(1.02) | 141.29; 3.14(1.18) | −3.03, p = .002 |
Connectedness: my child has positive relationships with his/her parents, siblings, and other family members, and with friends, teachers, coaches, or mentors | 170.45; 4.35(0.81) | 153.26; 4.18(0.91) | −1.63, p = .10 |
Character: my child knows what is right and wrong; and does the right thing; My child is open to others’ perspectives and believes in social justice for all. My child is honest | 166.67; 3.69(1.07) | 160.89; 3.62(1.10) | −.52, p = .60 |
Caring: my child cares about other people. He or she is concerned about whether others have what they need (shows sympathy) and shows a sense of compassion (empathy). My child is both sympathetic and empathetic to others | 179.49; 4.19(0.95) | 128.79; 3.56(1.20) | −4.64, p < .001 |
Contribution: my child tries to do things to help the family, to help neighbors, and to help the community. My child tries to also help himself/herself by staying healthy (eating right, exercising, getting enough sleep) | 170.81; 3.76(1.10) | 145.72; 3.46(1.14) | −2.28, p = .023 |
Procedure
Data Analytic Procedure
Adaptive behavior | Sociocommunicative skills | Functional cognitive skills | Community participation | Home participation | School participation | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sociocommunicative skills | .35** | – | ||||
Functional cognitive skills | .53** | .39** | – | |||
Community participation | .25** | .19** | .14* | – | ||
Home participation | .41** | .33** | .29** | .37** | – | |
School participation | .21** | .34** | .12 | .31** | .42** | – |
Thriving | .33** | .54** | .32** | .31** | .38** | .43** |
Results
Differences in Internal Strengths and External Resources
ID only M (SD) | ID and ASD M (SD) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Adaptive behavior | 20.86 (6.42) | 20.62 (5.97) |
t(328) = .32, p = .75, d = .04 |
Sociocommunicative skills | .2.86 (.59) | 2.35 (.56) |
t(328) = 7.16, p < .001, d = .79 |
Functional cognitive skills | 1.31 (.78) | 1.44 (.87) |
t(328) = −1.38, p = .17, d = .16 |
Home participation | 5.62 (.89) | 5.26 (.90) |
t(328) = 3.28, p = .001, d = .40 |
School participation | 3.31 (1.30) | 2.71 (1.35) |
t(328) = 3.72, p < .001, d = .45 |
Community participation | 3.32 (1.06) | 3.08 (1.00) |
t(328) = 1.90, p = .06, d = .23 |