Psychological Reports: Sociocultural Issues in Psychology 2014, 115, 3, 897-912. © Psychological Reports 2014

INFLUENCE OF AN AWARENESS PROGRAM ON PORTUGUESE MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF PEERS WITH DISABILITIES1, 2 MARIA J. CAMPOS AND JOSÉ P. FERREIRA Faculty of Sport Science and Physical Education, University of Coimbra MARTIN E. BLOCK Kinesiology Program, University of Virginia Summary.—The ongoing topic of attitudes toward inclusion of students with disabilities in Physical Education (PE) classes emphases the role of schools as a primary place where attitudes toward disabilities can be changed. The effect of an awareness program on students' attitudes toward the inclusion of peers with disabilities in PE was examined, as well as variables such as sex, age, previous contact with disability, and competitiveness. The participants were 509 students (235 girls, 274 boys; M age = 13.3 yr., SD = 1.1, range = 11–16), who attended middle and high Portuguese schools. The awareness intervention comprised a one-week program (2 PE classes, 90 min. and 45 min.). Attitudes were assessed before and after the intervention. The awareness program appeared to have a positive influence on changing students' attitudes toward inclusion in PE.

Inclusion of students with disabilities is one of the main school reform movements in many countries (O'Brien, Kudláček, & Howe, 2009), including Portugal. According to UNESCO (2008), inclusive education is an ongoing process aimed at offering quality education for all while respecting diversity and the different needs and abilities, characteristics, and learning expectations of the students and communities, eliminating all forms of discrimination. The Salamanca Statement and its Framework for Action (UNESCO, 1994) has been pointed out as the most important international document in the field of inclusive education, claiming that inclusive schools are the most effective means of combating discriminatory attitudes, building an inclusive society, and achieving an education for all. In Portugal, public policies require all students with disabilities to be included in regular schools. According to Costa and Rodrigues (1999), in 1997 75% of the Portuguese students with special education needs already received their education in regular schools. Recent data (Rodrigues & Nogueira, 2010) indicates that 98% of all students with disabilities atAddress correspondence to Maria Campos, FCDEF-UC, Estádio Universitário de Coimbra, Pavilhão III, Santa Clara, 3040-156 Coimbra, Portugal or e-mail ([email protected]). 2 The authors would like to thank César Rodrigues, Joana Amaral, and José Godinho for their contributions in data collection; and Humberto Carvalho, for his thoughtful review and insights on the final revision of this manuscript. 1

DOI 10.2466/11.15.PR0.115c26z7

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ISSN 0033-2941

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tend regular schools; these figures put Portugal in the group of European countries with the highest rate of inclusive education of students with disabilities. If governments and professional organizations in Europe support inclusive PE, then ultimately the experience of students with disabilities in PE is likely to improve. Despite the existence of policies promoting inclusive philosophies, by itself this is not sufficient to implement this change in regular schools. Some of the barriers encountered by students with disabilities are social acceptance and interaction with their peers. Research on students' attitudes toward inclusion of peers with disabilities in Physical Education (PE) may be crucial for successful inclusion. Methods are needed to increase understanding and awareness about the capabilities of their peers with disabilities. A number of studies in the United States of America have assessed attitudes of children without disabilities towards inclusion (e.g., Archie & Sherrill, 1989; Tripp, French, & Sherrill, 1995; Block & Zeman, 1996; Slininger, Sherrill, & Jankowski, 2000; Kalyvas & Reid, 2003; Obrusníková, Válková, & Block, 2003; Block & Obrusníková, 2007). Research indicates that negative attitudes and low acceptance can result in exclusion from activities, including in PE (e.g., Goodwin & Watkinson, 2000; Frese & Yun, 2007). Although findings remain inconclusive, there is evidence that other variables can affect students' attitudes, such as the student's sex, previous exposure to people with disabilities, and their competitiveness. According to Block (1995), girls seem to have more positive attitudes toward disabilities than boys, showing moderate effect size (Cohen's d = 0.35) for the general PE subscale. For the Slininger, et al. (2000) study, attitude was assessed by an adjective checklist and an intention scale revealing that girls scored higher than boys on both of these measures. The effect size (ω2) for the adjective checklist was .05, indicating a small difference between sex, and for the intention scale was .16, indicating a large difference between sex. The effect of previous contact with disability remains unclear, as some studies reported less positive attitudes on students with previous contact (e.g., Hutzler & Levi, 2008); i.e., unstructured previous exposure appeared to decrease children's willingness toward including children with disabilities in physical activities with a large effect size (Cohen's d = 0.55). However, another study by Block (1995) did not find significant differences for previous contact (Cohen's d = 0.17). It seems important to carefully structure the adaptations incorporated into the participation setting when it comes to previous exposure (Hutzler, 2003). The research evidence is also not clear regarding competitiveness. According to Block (2000), students who have a competitive nature may be disposed to refuse the inclusion of students with disabilities in PE classes or negatively pressure them be-

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cause they feel the activity will be slowed down or possibly ruined if a lower skilled student with a disability participates. Therefore, more research is needed to ascertain the effects of those variables in inclusion in PE contexts. To increase social awareness, understanding, and acceptance toward disability, researchers have suggested that programs should focus on the abilities rather than the limitations of people with disabilities (Frese & Yun, 2007). According to a systematic review of disability awareness interventions (Lindsay & Edwards, 2013), it is critical that those programs provide opportunities to learn and develop positive attitudes about differences in a respectful context. Given that perceptions of disability often shape attitudes and behaviors, it is also vital to improve children's understanding of people with disabilities. According to Lindsay and Edwards (2013), there are different types of awareness interventions: simulations, curriculum interventions, social contact, multi-media interventions, and multicomponent interventions with the purpose to break down stereotypes and to create awareness of the barriers encounter by people with disabilities. In Europe, related research has been done in Greece (Panagiotou, Evaggelinou, Doulkeridou, Mouratidou, & Koidou, 2008), the Czech Republic (Ješina, Lucas, Kudláček, Janecka, Machová, & Wittmannová, 2006), Israel (Hutzler & Levi, 2008), Spain (Reina, López, Jimenez, Garcia-Calvo, & Hutzler, 2011), and Belgium (Van Biesen, Busciglio, & Vanlandewijck, 2006). The Children's Attitude toward Inclusion in Physical Education– Revised (CAIPE–R; Block, 1995) has been most often used in Europe to measure the effects of an awareness program on attitudes of students without disabilities toward inclusion in PE. Panagiotou, et al. (2008) examined the effect of the “Paralympic School Day” program on the attitudes of Grades 6 and 7 Greek students without disabilities and sex differences in attitudes toward inclusion of children with disabilities in PE. The 178 children were divided into two groups (experimental n = 86; control group n = 92). The experimental group received an intervention to create awareness and understanding of people with disabilities. A 2 × 2 repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to examine the effect of the program on children's attitudes. Results showed statistically significant differences on the experimental group on the general PE subscale and a medium effect size was noted (η2 = 0.42). Overall, attitudes were relatively positive across all children in both groups before the awareness program, however, possibly due to the implementation of the Paralympic educational material in Greek primary schools (Panagiotou, et al., 2008). The authors suggested the success and development of the Paralympic Movement have created the need for an educational area in PE, and including Paralympic ideas in PE curriculum could be an effec-

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tive pedagogical method to create awareness and understanding toward persons with disabilities, while considering attitudes of acceptance and appreciation of individual differences as a vital characteristic of the PE curriculum (Panagiotou, et al., 2008). To date there has been no published research in Portugal on attitudes of children without disabilities toward inclusion in PE. The main purpose of the present research is to document students' attitudes, and to assess the effect of an awareness program (the “Adapted PE Week”) on their attitudes toward the inclusion of students with disabilities in PE and to scrutinize which attributes might have a positive effect on attitudes. Hypothesis 1. The awareness program would result in more positive attitudes toward inclusion of peers with disabilities in PE classes. Hypothesis 2. Girls will have more positive attitudes than boys; students with previous exposure to disability will have more positive attitudes; and less competitive students will have more positive attitudes than very competitive peers. METHOD Participants Participants included a convenience sample of 509 students (235 girls, M age = 13.2 yr., SD = 1.0; 274 boys, M age = 13.5 yr., SD = 1.2) ranging in age from 11 to 16 years (M age = 13.3, SD = 1.1). Participants in this study were recruited from three middle and high schools in the central region of Portugal. Approximately half of the participants (44.6%) reported having family, friends, or close neighbors with a disability; less than one-quarter of the participants (24.4%) already had a peer with disabilities in their PE classes. Some (15.9%) students perceived themselves as very competitive, 65.6% as more or less competitive, and 18.5% as not competitive. Measure The Children’s Attitudes toward Inclusion in Physical Education–Revised (CAIPE–R; Block, 1995) was used. It was developed to assess attitudes of students in regular schools toward including children with disabilities in their PE classes. The CAIPE–R consists of a description of a hypothetical student with a disability presented by a written vignette and numerous questions related to students' demographics and experience being with people with disabilities. The survey has eleven statements: six general statements about including a student with a disability in PE, which comprise the general PE attitude subscale (e.g., “If John were in your PE class, would you like to help him practice and play the games?”)

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and five specific statements about modifying rules of sports in PE comprise the sport specific attitude subscale (e.g., “Would it be OK to allow John to shoot at a lower basket?”). Students respond to each item using a 4-point adjective rating scale (4: Yes, 3: Probably yes, 2: Probably no, and 1: No). The general PE subscale measures beliefs toward the inclusion of students with disabilities in regular PE and the sport specific subscale focuses on beliefs toward modifications to group games. The overall scale was computed by summing ratings for each statement (Block, 1995). By focusing solely on attitudes toward inclusion in PE, the CAIPE–R is ideally suited for regular and adapted physical educators who are concerned with the effect inclusion in PE has on students without disabilities. The CAIPE–R is a valid and reliable instrument for measuring attitudes within the PE environment (Block, 1995). The original version of the CAIPE was revised and validated based on a sample of 208 Grade 5 and 6 students. The standardized item αs reported were .78 for the general attitude and .67 for the sport specific subscale, indicating acceptable internal consistency reliability for these subscales (Block, 1995). The Portuguese translated version was used and confirmatory factor analysis affirmed the CAIPE–R as a valid and reliable instrument to be used with middle and high school students in Portugal (Campos, Ferreira, & Block, 2013), showing that indices of overall model fit moderately supported the two-factor structure for the attitudes scale, with four out of six criteria reaching the cut-off intervals acceptable to confirm the model fit. Although the original version used a description of a child in a wheelchair participating in a softball game, the Portuguese version was adapted describing a child in a wheelchair participating in a basketball game, which is a popular game in Portuguese schools. Procedure The CAIPE–R questionnaire was given to the participating students one-week prior (pre-test) and one week after (post-test) the awareness program. This program consisted on two PE classes, 90 min. and 45 min. during one week, with multi-component intervention. It included a lecture with a brief theoretical introduction to Paralympic movement, with discussion and simulation activities (practicing Paralympic sports and adapted activities), and multi-media interventions (watching films and Internet sites about adapted sports, e.g., Paralympics and Special Olympics). The university ethics board's approval was obtained. The CAIPE–R was administered at the beginning of the class by three PE teachers trained by the main research investigator. Before the completion of the questionnaire, students were told that their responses were anonymous and that

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they could withdraw at any time, that their participation was voluntary and confidential, and that there were no correct or incorrect answers, so that the answer to each question depended on how they felt about what the researcher said. First a short text was read describing a hypothetical situation of a student with physical disabilities, which presented some difficulties in physical activity because the use of a wheelchair. After filling the biographical data (age, sex, grade, and previous exposure to disabilities), the teacher read aloud each of the statements related to the hypothetical situation that has previously been used, playing basketball as a practical example. After each question the teacher walked among the students to make sure they understood how to complete the survey. After the first application of the instrument, physical educators administered the one-week awareness program (one class of 90 min. and a class of 45 min.). First, the PE teacher presented theoretical and historical information about the Paralympics and the Special Olympics Movements as well as video resources via the online channel “Paralympic Sport TV.” After the theoretical approach and a brief discussion with the students (20% of the total time), the students participated as athletes with a disability in such sports as boccia (wheelchair), goalball (blindfolded), sitting volleyball, wheelchair basketball, and other adapted activities (80% of the total time). After the explanation of the specificity of each adapted sport, the participants were involved for at least 20 min. in each activity. These activities were undertaken to acquaint students with some specific sports for people with disabilities as well as the opportunity to experience these sports. Activities also were designed to help the participants realize that people with disabilities can also compete in regular sports. The post-test administration of the CAIPE–R was conducted one week after the awareness program. Analysis The assumption of normality was checked by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, with Lilliefors' significance correction, and by visual inspection of normality plots. Descriptive statistics were calculated for all subscales of the CAIPE–R before and after the awareness intervention. The first main step of the analysis was to examine changes in subscales of the CAIPE–R as a consequence of the awareness intervention using multilevel modeling, based on a pre- and post-season design (unconditional linear model), testing Hypothesis 1, that the awareness program would result in more positive attitudes toward inclusion of peers with disabilities in PE classes. Each participant's successive measurements over time were defined as individual response change and random error (level 1). Differences in response change between groups of individuals were examined (level 2).

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Also, the residual variance at level 1 describes the population variability in the average participant's estimates around her or his own true change trajectory, and the level 2 variance describes the between-participant variability in change trajectories (Singer & Willet, 2003). To allow inferences about the true (population) values of the effect of the awareness intervention, the 95% confidence limits for each effect were calculated. Also, the betweensubject standard deviation for each dependent variable was used to convert the absolute changes' values in responses into standardized (Cohen) changes in the mean (Batterham & Hopkins, 2006). The smallest standardized change was assumed to be 0.20 (Cohen, 1988). Multilevel regression analysis was used to test Hypothesis 2, that girls will have more positive attitudes than boys, students with previous exposure to disability will have more positive attitudes, and less competitive students will have more positive attitudes than very competitive peers. Tables 2, 3, and 4 show analyses of the overall scale, the general PE subscale and the sport specific subscale as dependent variables, respectively. The second step of the analysis was to explore the influence of age and sex on differences in the participants' initial status and changes in responses to the intervention exposure on the dependent variables; inter-individual variation in age, sex (dummy variable: 0 female; 1 male) were added as predictors (level 2) in conditional linear models. All parameters were fixed, with the exception of the constant (intercept term) and changes in responses to the intervention (slope) parameters, which were allowed to vary randomly at level 2 (between individuals). Interaction terms between sex or age with response change with intervention (cross level interaction) were explored as level 1 predictors, but no effect was found (data not presented). For each dependent variable, the models are referred to as Model 1 in Tables 2–4. The final step of the analysis was to explore the influence of the students’ context in the between-individuals variability of scores in the subscales of the CAIPE–R as a consequence of the awareness intervention, adding separately to the step 2 models the following variables as fixed terms at level 2: Family contact (dummy variable: 0 no family contact with disability; 1 family contact with disability; see Models 2 in Tables 2–4); Physical education contact (dummy variable: 0 no PE contact with disability; 1 PE contact with disability; see Models 3 in Tables 2–4); Competitive level (dummy variable: 0 not competitive; 1 more or less competitive; 2 very competitive; see Models 4 in Tables 2–4). Akaike information criterion (AIC) takes into account the different number of fitted parameters in the different model structures to be compared, and visual inspection of residual plots were performed to determine the final models' validity to fit responses of the dependent variables

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as a consequence of training, considering the effects of the predictor variables. Significance was set at p < .05. Statistical analyses were performed using mixed linear procedures available on SPSS version 20.0 (IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 20.0. IBM Corp. Armonk, NY, USA).

TABLE 1 MEAN CHANGES ON CAIPE–R QUESTIONNAIRE SUBSCALES AFTER AWARENESS PROGRAM Measure

Preintervention

Postintervention

Changes in Mean (95%CI)

M

SD

M

SD

General PE

19.0

2.6

20.0

2.6

1.0 (0.7, 1.2)

Sport specific

17.5

1.8

17.6

2.2

0.9 (−0.1, 0.3)

p

Cohen's d

Var. (95%CI)

< .001

0.38

2.0 (1.6, 2.6)

.30

0.05

1.3 (1.0, 1.6)

Overall 36.6 3.6 37.7 4.0 1.0 (0.7, 1.3) < .001 0.29 3.2 (2.3, 4.4) Note.—Var. = within-subject variation (level 1 residuals); CI = confidence interval.

RESULTS Descriptive statistics of the subscales of CAIPE–R pre- and postawareness intervention mean changes are presented in Table 1. For the overall scale and general PE subscale, changes with the awareness intervention were statistically significant (p < .01), but moderate in magnitude at best. No changes in scores on the sport specific subscale were observed. Results from multilevel regression modeling for overall scale, general PE, and sport specific subscales are summarized in Tables 2, 3, and 4, respectively. Model 1 represents the influence of age and sex to explain variation in scores. Significant negative values were found for age and sex in the overall and general PE models. Results indicate that older and male students had lower ratings in the subscales pre-intervention, and the magnitude of changes with the intervention was similar across students. No influence of age and sex was observed for the sport specific subscale. Models 2 to 4 explored separately the influence of context, partitioning the age and sex effects, on the changes in CAIPE–R subscales with the intervention. Students with previous contact with disability both in family and PE had higher ratings in all the subscales of the CAIPE–R. This indicates that previous contact with disability has a positive influence on the students' perceptions toward inclusion of children with disabilities on PE classes. Very competitive students reported less positive values in the overall scale and general PE subscale. However, variation in the magnitude of changes was not influenced by competitive level, but sex effects were removed when competitive level was included in the model for overall scale and the general PE subscale, i.e. Models 4 (Tables 3 and 4). This model in-

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ATTITUDES TOWARD DISABILITY, PE TABLE 2 MULTILEVEL REGRESSION ANALYSIS WITH SCALE AS DEPENDENT VARIABLE Variable

Exponent Value (Standard Error) Model 1

Model 2

Model 3

Model 4

40.8† (1.7)

40.4† (1.7)

40.0† (1.7)

42.1† (1.7)

Fixed explanatory variables Constant Change with intervention

1.0† (0.2)

1.0† (0.2)

Age

−0.3* (0.1)

1.0† (0.2)

−0.3* (0.1)

−0.3* (0.1)

−0.3* (0.1)

Sex

−0.6* (0.3)

−0.6* (0.3)

−0.6* (0.3)

−0.3 (0.3)

Family contact

1.0 (0.2)

0.7* (0.3)

PE contact

1.6† (0.3)

Competitive level, Middle

−1.7† (0.5)

Competitive level, Very

−1.3† (0.4)

Variance-covariance matrix of random variables Level 1 (within individuals) Variance

3.2† (0.5)

3.2† (0.5)

3.3 (0.5)

3.1† (0.5)

7.5† (0.7)

7.5† (0.7)

Level 2 (between individuals) 7.1† (0.6)

7.4† (0.7)

–2 Restricted log likelihood

Variance

5291

5285

5268

5278

Akaike's information criterion

5303

5299

5682

5293

Note.—For family and PE contact, “no contact” is the reference. For both competitive level variables, “no” is the reference. *p < .05. †p < .01.

dicates that it is competitiveness that drives the observed sex difference. No significant influence of competitive level was found on the sport specific subscale. DISCUSSION The present research assessed the influence of an awareness program on Portuguese students' attitudes toward the inclusion of peers with disabilities in PE classes. It also included an analysis of which variables may influence their attitudes among sex, age, previous contact, and competitiveness. It is important to notice how positive the attitudes were throughout the study. Even though significant differences were found from preto post-test for some of the variables, these results should be viewed with caution, as the effect sizes were low or moderate and the mean differences were small. Portuguese students may have high positive attitudes even before the intervention presumably because they already have some contact with children with disabilities in different contexts. Changes of attitudes from pre- to post-test were significant for the overall scale and for the general subscale. These results support Van Biesen, et al.

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M. J. CAMPOS, ET AL. TABLE 3 MULTILEVEL REGRESSION ANALYSIS WITH GENERAL PHYSICAL EDUCATION SUBSCALE AS DEPENDENT VARIABLE Variable

Exponent Value (Standard Error) Model 1

Model 2

Model 3

Model 4

22.7† (1.1)

22.5† (1.1)

22.2† (1.1)

23.6† (1.2)

1.0† (0.1)

1.0† (0.1)

1.0† (0.1)

1.0† (0.1)

Age

−0.3† (0.1)

−0.2* (0.1)

−0.2* (0.1)

−0.3* (0.1)

Sex

−0.4* (0.2)

−0.4* (0.2)

−0.4* (0.2)

−0.1 (0.2)

Fixed explanatory variables Constant Change with intervention

Family contact

0.3 (0.2)a

PE contact

1.0† (0.2)

Competitive level, Middle

−1.3† (0.3)

Competitive level, Very

−0.9† (0.3)

Variance-covariance matrix of random variables Level 1 (within individuals) Variance

2.0† (0.3)

2.1† (0.3)

2.1† (0.3)

2.0† (0.3)

Level 2 (between individuals) 3.1† (0.3)

3.1† (0.3)

2.9† (0.3)

3.1† (0.3)

–2 Restricted log likelihood

Variance

4578

4575

4559

4562

Akaike's information criterion

4590

4589

4573

4577

Note.—For family and PE contact, “no contact” is the reference. For both competitive level variables, “no” is the reference. ap = .07. *p < .05. †p < .01.

(2006) and Panagiotou, Kudláček, and Evaggelinou (2006): overall, the implementation of an awareness program had a positive influence on the attitudes of students without disabilities regarding the inclusion of peers with disabilities in PE. It was interesting to notice that there were no significant differences for the sport specific subscale before and after the awareness program. This is in line with Lindsay and Edwards' (2013) report that in 42 awareness studies, 34 showed an improvement in attitudes toward peers with disabilities and that awareness programs can, on the one hand, successfully improve children's knowledge about and attitudes toward peers with a disability; and on the other hand, it may help improve the social inclusion and participation of children with disabilities in classrooms. According to Block (1995), the CAIPE–R could be used by researchers interested in studying and understanding the influence of such factors as type and severity of disability, types of contact (e.g., peer tutor, friend, classmate), sex, and age. Therefore, in respect to sex differences, in the present study, it seems that girls have more positive attitudes than boys

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ATTITUDES TOWARD DISABILITY, PE TABLE 4 MULTILEVEL REGRESSION ANALYSIS WITH SPORT-SPECIFIC SUBSCALE AS DEPENDENT VARIABLE Variable

Exponent Value (Standard Error) Model 1

Model 2

Model 3

Model 4

17.9† (0.9)

17.4† (0.1)

17.4† (0.1)

17.2† (0.2)

0.1 (0.1)

0.1 (0.1)

0.1 (0.1)

0.1 (0.1)

Fixed explanatory variables Constant Change with intervention Age

−0.8 (0.5)

Sex

−0.2 (0.6)

Family contact

0.4† (0.1)

PE contact

0.6† (0.2)

Competitive level, Middle

−0.4 (0.3)

Competitive level, Very

−0.3 (0.2)

Variance-covariance matrix of random variables Level 1 (within individuals) Variance

1.3† (0.2)

1.3† (0.2)

1.3† (0.2)

1.3† (0.2)

1.8† (0.2)

1.8† (0.2)

1.8† (0.2)

1.8† (0.2)

Level 2 (between individuals) Variance –2 Restricted log likelihood

4072

4062

4067

4071

Akaike's information criterion

4084

4072

4077

4083

Note.—For family and PE contact, “no contact” is the reference. For both competitive level variables, “no” is the reference. †p < .01.

with regard to the inclusion of students with disabilities in PE, showing statistically significant differences for the overall scale and for the general PE subscale. These findings support a growing body of literature on sex differences in attitudes toward people with disabilities (e.g., Voeltz, 1982; Hazzard, 1983; Tripp, et al., 1995; Van Biesen, et al., 2006; Reina, et al., 2011). Block (1995) also found that girls had more favorable attitudes toward children with disabilities compared to boys. In the study conducted by Van Biesen, et al. (2006), girls had more positive attitudes than boys in all dependent variables. However, Block (1995) pointed out that sex was only significantly correlated with the general PE subscale. Panagiotou, et al. (2008) came to a different conclusion as no significant differences in attitudes were found between boys and girls. Panagiotou, et al.'s (2008) study was developed in a specific disability awareness context, as Greek students in general have been experiencing a Paralympic educational curriculum in primary schools since the organization of the Athens Paralympic Games in 2004. The extra hour included in the curriculum may have increased awareness toward disability among students, modulating chil-

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dren's attitudes and lessening any differences between boys and girls. Panagiotou, et al. (2008) recommend further research to be done in countries that have not organized Paralympic Games. It is important to notice that when competitiveness is taken into account, the sex differences were weak. Previous studies did not analyze the interaction between these variables. Another variable that seems to influence attitudes toward inclusion is age. Present findings reveal that younger students have significantly more positive attitudes on both the overall scale and general PE subscale. A recent systematic review also reported that some of the intervention studies found a difference in effect by age (Lindsay & Edwards, 2013). For example, Swaim and Morgan (2001) found that older students (6th graders) reported less positive attitudes toward a boy with autism than did younger students (3th graders). As regards family contact, present results indicate that students who have a family member, friends or neighbors with disabilities had significantly more favorable attitudes for all dependent variables (overall scale and general PE and sport specific subscales). People who have a close friend or family member with a disability more naturally accept a classmate with a disability in PE classes and are more likely to accept changes in games and activities to accommodate. This fact can be possibly justified by the tolerance and acceptance established by a close contact with people with disabilities and possibly by a greater knowledge of their potential and capabilities. The current study's results are similar to those of other studies; e.g., Block's (1995) study indicated that children who had a family member or close friend with a disability scored significantly more positively (i.e., higher) on the general and sport specific subscales. Also, Hutzler and Levi's (2008) findings showed that the mean scores of students who had family or close friends with disabilities scored higher on all dependent variables. Contact in PE classes also indicated a significant effect. Students who had peers with disabilities in PE had more positive attitudes. These results are supported by previous research findings (e.g., Murata, Hodge, & Little, 2000). These findings are very interesting, as students who interact with peers with disabilities in PE classes had more positive attitudes on the overall scale as well as on both subscales. However, Van Biesen, et al. (2006) and Block (1995) did not find significant results for previous contact; it is surprising that having a peer with a disability in PE was not significantly associated with either the general or sport specific subscales. This topic is still mired in contradictory findings. In the Portuguese educational system there is no adapted physical educator, so PE teachers must accommodate students with disabilities in the regular class. Probably this

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structured interaction enables a positive contact between students with and without disabilities, promoting positive attitudes. Overall, results obtained in the present study suggest that more competitive students had less positive attitudes toward inclusion of students with disabilities in PE. Several studies corroborate present findings. For example, Block (1995) found that self-reported non-competitive students had significantly higher attitude scores compared to self-reported competitive students. Also, Van Biesen, et al. (2006) concluded that the more competitive the students, the less positive their attitudes are toward inclusion of peers with disabilities in PE. According to Kalyvas and Reid (2003), results indicate that students do not agree with the amendment of rules, and this may be due to the fact that the adjustment in the rules can remove the challenge and the competition in the proposed PE tasks. It is possible that competitive children believe inclusion of a student with disabilities and accommodations needed to make this student successful might decrease the intensity or even completely ruin games played in PE, such as basketball. According to Block (1995), three attributes significantly affect the general PE subscale (school attended, sex, and having a family member or close friend with a disability), while only one attribute significantly affected scores on the sport specific subscale (having a family member or close friend with a disability). The present study supports the idea that attitudes correlate with sex, age, previous contact with disability (having a family member or close friend and in PE), and competitiveness. The effect of sex was attenuated when competitiveness was taken into account. Limitations and Conclusions In summary, many positive outcomes of inclusion in PE have been identified over the last two decades. Data have indicated that students with disabilities (a) can be successfully included in PE when given proper support, (b) do not have any negative effect on peers without disabilities, and (c) tend to have moderately positive attitudes toward peers with disabilities; but further research is needed (Block & Obrusnikova, 2007). Also, previous research findings (e.g., Block & Zeman, 1996; Murata & Jansma, 1997; Vogler, Koranda, & Romance, 2000) suggest that the inclusion of students with disabilities does not adversely affect the participation and/or motor performance of students without disabilities. However, further evidence is needed to verify whether those students are prepared to receive peers with disabilities in PE classes. Present results suggest they are prepared, particularly if they would be involved in an awareness program with adapted physical activities in the PE curriculum. Findings showed that students' attitudes improved after the implementation of the program

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and the students became more aware of inclusion of peers with disabilities. According to Lindsay and Edwards (2013), it is important to improve awareness about disability because children's attitudes are often strongly influenced by their knowledge. Educators should carefully choose an appropriate intervention to meet the needs of the students in their classes. Some limitations of the present study are the age range of the participants and the fact that maturational effects were not controlled, as psychosocial and cognitive changes occurring during puberty can directly affect students' attitudes and perceptions toward inclusion. Present results refer to attitudes toward including a student in a wheelchair in a basketball unit. Findings might differ for other disabilities and sports. Additionally, the absence of a control group may be seen as a limitation, as all students participated in the intervention. Attitudes were self-reported, and they may not reflect the participant's actual behaviors; i.e. reporting positive attitudes does not necessarily mean that inclusion will be successful. Future research should include a more detailed analysis of intervention programs and longitudinal follow-up studies. According to the present findings, competitiveness seemed to be a predictor of attitudes, and it could be interesting to develop an intervention focused on adaptations to show competitive students that PE activities could remain challenging and fun in spite of the changes. The authors also recommend doing some follow-up qualitative work with focus groups to ascertain additional potentially mediating factors. Implementation of effective intervention programs in schools is needed, in addition to including adapted sports and other awareness activities in PE curricula and textbooks. REFERENCES

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