Abstract
DOI: https://doi.org/10.58984/smb2602107m
The present study investigated pre-service physical education (P.E.) teachers’ attitudes, intentions, and perceived behavioral control (PBC) regarding the inclusion of children with disabilities in mainstream schools, as well as the relationships among these variables. It further examined the effects of gender and year of study and explored the association between perceived academic preparation and perceived teaching competence within the TPB framework. A total of 176 P.E. students (68 males, 108 females) completed validated questionnaires. Descriptive findings indicated high intention (M = 6.02, SD = 0.82) and positive attitudes (M = 5.74, SD = 0.67), whereas PBC was moderate (M = 5.00, SD = 1.15). Year of study did not significantly affect TPB variables (p > .05), while female students reported significantly higher intention scores than males, t(174) = −2.44, p < .01. Correlation analyses revealed significant positive associations between attitudes and intention (r = .457, p < .01), intention and PBC (r = .451, p < .01), and attitudes and PBC (r = .273, p < .01). Moreover, perceived university preparation was strongly associated with perceived teaching competence (r = .637, p < .01), which was moderately related to attitudes (r = .278, p < .01) and intention (r = .264, p < .01). The findings highlight the central role of university preparation in strengthening inclusive dispositions and perceived competence among future P.E. teachers.
References
- Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T
- Ajzen, I. (2006). Constructing a theory of planned behavior questionnaire. https://people.umass.edu/~aizen/pdf/tpb.measurement.pdf (accessed 14 March 2026).
- Ajzen, I., & Madden, T. J. (1986). Prediction of goal-directed behavior: Attitudes, intentions, and perceived behavioral control. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 22(5), 453–474. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1031(86)90045-4
- Avramidis, E., Bayliss, P., & Burden, R. (2000). Student teachers’ attitudes towards the inclusion of children with special educational needs in the ordinary school. Teaching and Teacher Education, 16(3), 277–293. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-051X(99)00062-1
- Block, M. E., & Obrusnikova, I. (2007). Inclusion in physical education: A review of the literature from 1995–2005. Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, 24(2), 103–124. https://doi.org/10.1123/apaq.24.2.103
- Boyle, C., Barrell, C., Allen, K.-A., & She, L. (2023). Primary and secondary pre-service teachers’ attitudes towards inclusive education. Heliyon, 9(11), e22328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e22328
- Hersman, B. L., & Hodge, S. R. (2010). High school physical educators’ beliefs about teaching differently abled students in an urban public school district. Education and Urban Society, 42(6), 730–757. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013124510371038
- Papadopoulou, D., Kokaridas, D., Papanikolaou, Z., & Patsiaouras, A. (2004). Attitudes of Greek physical education teachers toward inclusion of students with disabilities. International Journal of Special Education, 19(2), 104–111.
- Rojo-Ramos, J., Manzano-Redondo, F., Adsuar, J. C., Acevedo-Duque, Á., Gomez-Paniagua, S., & Barrios-Fernandez, S. (2022). Spanish physical education teachers’ perceptions about their preparation for inclusive education. Children, 9(1), 108. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9010108
- Saloviita, T. (2018). Attitudes of teachers towards inclusive education in Finland. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 64(6), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2018.1541819
- Sato, T., & Hodge, S. R. (2007). Japanese physical education teachers’ beliefs about teaching students with disabilities. Sport, Education and Society, 12(2), 211–230. https://doi.org/10.1080/13573320701287536
- Sharma, U., & Sokal, L. (2015). The impact of a teacher education course on pre-service teachers’ beliefs about inclusion: An international comparison. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 15(4), 276–284. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12043
- Simons, J., & Kalogeropoulos, S. (2005). Attitudes of primary physical education teachers towards teaching pupils with disabilities. International Journal of Child and Family Welfare, 8(2-3), 114–126.
- Symeonidou, S., & Phtiaka, H. (2014). ‘My colleagues wear blinkers . . . If they were trained, they would understand better’. Reflections on teacher education on inclusion in Cyprus. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 14(2), 110–119. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-3802.2012.01234.x
- Tanure Alves, M. L., van Munster, M., & Dos Santos Alves, I. (2022). The “normal” physical education classes: The ableism facing the inclusion of disabled students. Disability & Society, 39(1), 121–142. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2022.2071679
- Zagona, A. L., Kurth, J. A., & MacFarland, S. Z. (2017). Teachers’ views of their preparation for inclusive education and collaboration. Teacher Education and Special Education, 40(3), 163–178. https://doi.org/10.1177/0888406417692969
