ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Sports Act. Living
Sec. Physical Education and Pedagogy
Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fspor.2025.1608703
This article is part of the Research TopicAdapted Physical Activity: Inclusion in Physical Education and SportsView all 3 articles
Predicting Fitness Coaches´ Intentions to Include Persons with Disabilities in Gyms: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior
Provisionally accepted
- 1Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
- 2University of Vechta, Vechta, Lower Saxony, Germany
- 3University of Siegen, Siegen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
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Introduction: Promoting equal access to fitness offers implies the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in gyms. However, many gyms do not meet the needs of people with disabilities due to physical, social, and human resource barriers. This study examines fitness coaches' capacities and intentions of providing fitness offers for individuals with disabilities using the theory of planned behavior as a framework.Methods: A quantitative online survey was conducted with 182 fitness coaches in Germany. The data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling, and regression analysis to empirically test the theory of planned behavior constructs and identify factors influencing coaches' intentions.Results: The analysis confirmed that descriptive norms and experiential attitudes predict coaches' intentions to support individuals with disabilities, highlighting the importance of social pressures and experience-based attitudes. Previous experiences, frequent contact with individuals with disabilities, and adequate preparation, often achieved through informal means, play crucial roles in shaping these intention-forming factors.Discussion: Although fitness coaches express strong intentions to support individuals with disabilities, there is a need for targeted training and resources. These trainings and additional resources could equip coaches with the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively translate their intentions into practice, even though the actual implementation was not measured in the study.
Keywords: Attitude, Subjective norm, Perceived behavior control, Intention, confirmatory factor analysis - CFA, structural equation model, Regression Analysis
Received: 09 Apr 2025; Accepted: 07 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Dransmann, Braksiek, Meier, Gröben, Lesch and Wicker. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Milan Dransmann, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
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