Experiences in Physical Education with Bardet-Biedl Syndrome: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Case Study

By Katherine Holland, Justin A. Haegele, Xihe Zhu, and Ellie Brady

Preferred Citation

Holland, K., Haegele, J. A., Zhu, X., & Brady, E. (2020). Experiences in physical education with Bardet-Biedl Syndrome: An interpretative phenomenological analysis case study. Journal of Blindness Innovation & Research, 10(2). https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/jbir/jbir20/jbir100203.html. doi: http://dx.doi/10.5241/10-185

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine physical education (PE) experiences from the perspective of an adult with Bardet-Biedl syndrome. An interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) research approach was used, and one male (age 32) with Bardet-Biedl syndrome acted as the participant. Sources of data included a semi-structured, audiotaped telephone interview and reflective interview notes. The interview was transcribed verbatim and data were analyzed thematically using a two-step approach informed by the IPA. Three themes emerged from the data: (a) “We were pretty much good friends”: The teacher’s influence, (b) “You’re different, must destroy”: Bullying and negative peer interactions, and (c) “I could never see the damn thing coming”: Inappropriate and inaccessible activities. These themes provide unique insights into how an individual with Bardet-Biedl syndrome experienced PE. Generally, the participant recalled negative experiences with regards to peer interaction and an inability to participate, but positive memories of one physical educator.

Keywords

Visual impairment, adapted physical education, blindness, inclusion


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DOI: http://dx.doi/10.5241/10-185

The Journal of Blindness Innovation and Research is copyright (c) 2020 to the National Federation of the Blind.