Role models
Role models can encourage individuals to play sport and become more physically active.
A common phrase, used in many spheres, is 'if you can see it, you can be it'. 97, 98, 99
Role models can encourage individuals to play sport and become more physically active. They provide evidence that success in an activity is attainable, help counteract negative stereotypes, and represent possible future states. 10, 31, 32, 97, 100, 101
While Paralympic athletes are often highlighted as successful role models, other research emphasizes the importance of family members, friends, coaches, and the broader community to promote positive engagement in sport, education, and other healthy behaviours. 32, 41, 100, 102, 103, 104, 133
A lack of visible role models, including limited numbers of players, coaches, and officials with disability, is often seen as a barrier to participation in sport. Seeing participants with disability at all levels can help to signal that a sport is welcoming and safe to join. 32, 48, 61, 133
Research by the Activity Alliance in the UK found that people with disability were half as likely to ‘see people like me’ playing and working in sport and physical activity (22% compared to 44% of those without disability). 48
Representations in the media
Many researchers and commentators highlight the positive outcomes of using athlete role models to promote sport participation for people with disability. 105
However, some advocates question the way in which Paralympic athletes are portrayed in the media, particularly the focus on what they have overcome (i.e. ‘disability’) rather than who they are or their accomplishments. 106
Several terms have been coined to describe this phenomenon including ‘super-crip’ (i.e. the ‘super’ cripple) or 'inspiration porn'. These advocates argue that the media construction of a sporting ‘role model’ may be harmful to both the athletes and the broader disability community. 107, 108
Resources and reading
- From Sporting Cripples to Powerful Advocates – How the Paralympic Movement Arrived at its Alcott Moment, opens in a new tab, Greg Blood and Tony Naar, Australian Sport Reflections, (31 January 2022). The announcement of Dylan Alcott as 2022 Australian of the Year is a significant milestone. Alcott became the first Australian with a visible disability to be awarded this honour. Not only that, but Alcott is a Paralympian, the first to be honoured as Australian of the Year in the 62 years since the first Paralympic Games, in Rome, 1960.
- Report Finds Australian Paralympic Team Among Nation’s Most Popular, opens in a new tab, David Sygall, Paralympics Australia, (25 November 2021). A report by research agency Gemba found that interest in the Tokyo Paralympics (28 percent) was higher among Australians than for the Rio 2016 (22 percent) and London 2012 Games (25 percent), awareness and marketability of Paralympians “grew significantly” during the research period and the Australian Paralympic Team had the third highest level of interest of all national teams. At the top of the list was wheelchair tennis gold medallist Dylan Alcott, whose asset power rose during the Games from a rating of 1646 to 3072. Alcott was followed by wheelchair racing champion Madison de Rozario (1056 to 1486), wheelchair rugby captain Ryley Batt (no previous rating to 863), Para-swimming great Ellie Cole (453 to 821), Para-canoe champion Curtis McGrath (427 to 804) and Para-athletics star Isis Holt (645 to 783). Gemba’s survey placed interest in the Australian Paralympic Team (28 percent) marginally behind the Australian cricket team (32 percent) and ahead of the Australian Boomers basketball team (24 percent).
- Paralympian role models: media hype, political rhetoric or the real deal?, opens in a new tab Louise McCuaig, Senior Lecturer Health and Physical Education in Schools, University of Queensland, The Conversation, (16 September 2016). Provides an overview of how the success of role models is often dependent on how 'relevant' they are to those observing them and how 'attainable' their achievements appear and provides anecdote to demonstrate how a Paralympic athlete has been so to a young boy.
- Rio Paralympics 2016: Athletes find role-model status a tricky balance, opens in a new tab. Marc Lancaster, Sporting News, (9 July 2016). Short article which includes several Rio Paralympic athletes discussing the balance between being a role model and just themselves.
- Australian Paralympic Team: our most-loved representatives, opens in a new tab, Greg Blood, The Roar, (22 June 2016). What values are Australians looking for in their national teams so that they are ‘loved’ and be the ‘most loved’? These values may include striving to win but not at any cost, inclusiveness, selflessness, good behaviour, teamwork, loyalty and national pride.
- 2012 Paralympic Games - Are they Superhuman?The Inclusion Club, Episode 31, (2012). This article looks at the perspective given to elite Paralympic athletes – should they be seen as ‘super hero’ (inspirational) or ‘super human’ (freaky)?
- Breaking Barriers: Supporting Disabled Teenage Girls to be Active Research, opens in a new tab, Access Sport, (May 2024). The unique experiences of disabled teenage girls can be lost when viewed through research focused solely on girls or disabled young people. The goal of this research was to understand their experiences so that we can create engaging sport and exercise offers that work for them. The research used surveys and focus groups with teenage girls in the UK, aged 11-19 years, who had a disability or impairment; a long-term health condition; and/or a neurodiverse condition, to explore disabled teenage girls’ experiences, attitudes and barriers towards sport and exercise. Some key findings included:
- Girls we spoke to interpreted ‘not having anyone similar to them doing sport or exercise’ in different ways. Some said they don’t see anyone with their impairment taking part and are put off sport or exercise as a result. Others said they don’t see girls of the same ethnicity or faith as them taking part, but they didn’t explicitly relate this barrier to their impairment. This highlights the importance of considering multiple social categorisations such as race, disability or socio-economic status when examining teenage girls’ experiences.
- Girls-only opportunities help girls find joy in sport and, for disabled teenage girls, participating with other disabled girls is important.
- Disabled teenage girls want to take part in a judgement-free environment where fun is prioritised, and coaches, volunteers and teachers play an important role in creating this environment for them.
- Paralympic sport key to driving NZ’s inclusion of disabled people, opens in a new tab, Paralympics New Zealand (December 2023). A nationwide poll conducted by market research firm Ipsos shows 84% of Kiwis believe the country should be inclusive of disabled people, but only half that number, 42%, feel Aotearoa New Zealand is inclusive of disabled people. Sport can help bridge the gap: 75% of Kiwis say Paralympic sport increases pride in New Zealand, and 55% want to see more coverage of it.
- Annual Disability and Activity Survey 2022-23, opens in a new tab, Activity Alliance (UK), (June 2023). The fourth Annual Disability and Activity Survey report for 2022-23. The survey is the primary source of insight for organisations working to achieve fairness for disabled people in sport and activity. Key findings include:
- Disabled people were half as likely to ‘see people like me’ playing and working in sport and physical activity. (22% compared to 44% of those without disability).
- People with disability were less likely to 'see people like me playing sport and being active' (32% compared to 65% of people without disability).
- 12% of disabled people wanted the opportunity to become a coach or have a role in delivering physical activity (vs 17% of non-disabled people). This increased to 26% of disabled people who were taking part in organised activities, and to 31% of young disabled people.
- EVERYONE CAN: The experiences and expectations of the 1 in 5, making physical activity accessible and welcoming for all, opens in a new tab, UK active, (2022). There is a clear commercial opportunity for the physical activity sector. The economic value of the ‘purple pound’ is worth £249bn per year, and four in five (81%) of disabled adults want to do more physical activity than they currently engage in. Like many, disabled people (70%) are motivated to be active as a way of either improving or maintaining their physical health. The physical activity sector has an essential role in narrowing the disparities and inequalities faced by disabled people today. ukactive’s vision is to support and help develop a sector that is freely accessed and utilised by all, enabling everyone to be active and participate in whatever capacity they wish. Our sector wants to continue improving the standards for disabled people in every community.
- How inclusive are SA sport clubs? A study into the attitudes and behaviours of members from South Australian mainstream sporting clubs, opens in a new tab, Katrina Ranford, Inclusive Sport SA, (June 2019). In 2018 Inclusive Sport SA was successful in securing a two-year Information Linkages and Capacity Building Project funded by the National Disability Insurance Agency, with the agenda to increase capability of the sector and grow active participation of people with disability (PWD) in mainstream sporting clubs and associations. A pillar of this project saw the consultation with Sport bodies and their members to understand the current landscape with regard to inclusive practices and in particular including people with disability in mainstream sporting clubs. Some key findings include:
- If we want inclusion in sport and society to grow a three-point journey to success is recommended. This includes spending time looking at education and training for deliverers of sport and recreation; for the sector to take accountability of delivering an inclusive environment; and an increase in visibility of people with a disability fulfilling roles in our mainstream clubs. Only then will we shift the perception of PWD participating in mainstream club land from inspirational or odd to everyday, ordinary sporting life.
- Overcoming barriers to participation, opens in a new tab, British Blind Sport, (2014). Sport and recreational activities can enhance the lives of people with visual impairments by improving their health and increasing social interaction. British Blind Sport conducted a survey to understand how blind and partially sighted people overcome barriers to participation in sport, and to understand the motivations of visually impaired people for taking up sport. Telephone interviews and focus groups were used to collect data. This report identifies a number of motivations as well as barriers. Practical solutions are offered to help visually impaired persons, and organisations providing services to them, overcome the barriers, including highlighting athletes in the community who are vision impaired as role models.
- An evidence review of the current barriers and facilitators of disabled people’s engagement with gyms, fitness and leisure centres, opens in a new tab, UK active, (2022). A narrative review presents available evidence under the three Everyone Can agenda themes: ‘information and communication’; ‘facilities and the environment’; ‘customer service and the workforce’. The evidence suggests key improvements that can be implemented to support and provide encouragement for disabled people to participate in activity in safe, welcoming and inclusive gyms, fitness and leisure centres. Key findings include increasing knowledge and awareness of disability across the workforce and all users, ensure accessible facilities both inside and outside including the equipment and activity delivery, communicating in a consistent manner, and creating a positive experience, having disabled role models and changing perceptions. This review highlights the need for continued improvement to ensure disabled people can participate in physical activity in gyms, fitness and leisure centres.
- Navigator Role for Promoting Adaptive Sports and Recreation Participation in Individuals With Disabilities, opens in a new tab, Iverson, Moriah; Ng, Alexander; Yan, Alice, American Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Volume 100(6), pp.592-598, (June 2021). The aims of the study were to gain a better understanding of the resources, barriers, and facilitators of participation in adaptive sport and recreational activities as a means of achieving physical activity recommendations in individuals with disability and to understand preferences for a patient navigator service to help mitigate the barriers. One hundred ninety-eight adults and 146 parents completed the online surveys. Sixteen adults and 18 parents took part in focus groups. Many participants lacked knowledge of available adaptive sport and recreational resources; other barriers were expense, limited number of trained volunteers, and need for instruction. Conversely, persons were facilitated by community, socialization, and words of encouragement/motivation. Participants strongly preferred a patient navigator to be a person active in adaptive sport and recreational or an informative resource-filled website. Findings suggest that physical activity programs including adaptive sport and recreational should be designed to offer people with disabilities opportunities to build social networks and strengthen social support. A patient navigator service could help increase participation in adaptive sport and recreational and physical activity within a community context.
- Elements contributing to meaningful participation for children and youth with disabilities: a scoping review, opens in a new tab, Claire Willis, Sonya Girdler, Melanie Thompson, et.al., Disability and Rehabilitation, Volume 39(17), pp.1771-1784, (2017). The search identified 9544 articles, of which 20 were included for review. Ten elements contributing to meaningful participation experiences were identified and organised as follows: person-based elements (n = 5; having fun, experiencing success, belonging, experiencing freedom, developing an identity); environment-focused elements (n = 4; authentic friendships, the opportunity to participate, role models, family support) and activity-related elements (n = 1; learning). Elements contributing to meaningful leisure participation are interrelated. This review reveals the substantial contribution that meaningful interactions and relationships have in creating and facilitating positive and engaging experiences. Outcomes of this review may assist professionals in the design of targeted interventions to facilitate leisure participation.
- Elite athletes or superstars? Media representation of para-athletes at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, opens in a new tab, McPherson G, O’Donnell H, McGillivray D, et.al., Disability and Society , Volume 31(5), pp.659-675, (2016). This paper analyses media representations of para-athletes before, during and after the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014. The authors consider the importance of the media-sport cultural complex in influencing public attitudes towards disability. They conclude that whilst the importance of media exposure cannot be underestimated, change at the level of lived experience will only flow from carefully designed and executed political and policy initiatives rather than directly from changes in the media presentation or visibility of individual athletes.
- Paralympic Legacy: Exploring the Impact of the Games on the Perceptions of Young People With Disabilities, opens in a new tab, Janine Coates and Philip Vickerman, Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, Volume 33(4(, pp.338-357, (2016). The London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games aimed to deliver a legacy to citizens of the United Kingdom, which included inspiring a generation of young people to participate in sport. This study aimed to understand the legacy of the Paralympic Games for children with disabilities. Eight adolescents (11–16 yr) with physical disabilities were interviewed about their perceptions of the Paralympic Games. Thematic analysis found 3 key themes that further our understanding of the Paralympic legacy. These were Paralympians as role models, changing perceptions of disability, and the motivating nature of the Paralympics. Findings demonstrate that the Games were inspirational for children with disabilities, improving their self-perceptions. This is discussed in relation to previous literature, and core recommendations are made.
- Public attitudes toward people with intellectual disabilities after viewing Olympic or Paralympic performance, opens in a new tab, Ferrara K, Burns J, Mills, H, Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, Volume 32(1), pp.19-33, (2015). One of the aspirations of the 2012 Paralympic Games was to influence the public’s attitudes toward people with disabilities. The aim of this study was to investigate whether stimuli depicting people with intellectual disability performing at Paralympic level would change public attitudes. A mixed randomised comparison design was employed, comparing two groups; one group who viewed Paralympic-level sport footage of athletes with intellectually disability and another group who viewed Olympic footage of athletes. This study found that implicit (subconscious) attitudes significantly changed in a positive direction for both groups. Despite some limitations to this study, it seems that media coverage of the Paralympic and Olympic Games has the potential to change attitudes toward people with intellectual disability and disabilities in general in a positive direction.
- Empower, inspire, achieve: (dis)empowerment and the Paralympic Games, opens in a new tab, David Purdue & P. David Howe, Disability and Society, (December 2012). Through interviewing past and current Paralympians and other disability stakeholders the authors findings suggest Paralympians are most likely to gain empowerment from the Paralympic Games, yet their specific impairment, athletic lifestyles and failure to identify as ‘disabled’ were identified as potentially limiting the ability of the Paralympic Games to empower others.
- Using Role Models to Help Celebrate Paralympic Sport, opens in a new tab. Mastro J, Ahrens C, Statton N, The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, Volume 83(4), pp.28-30, (2012). The article discusses ways in which role models from disability sports can be implemented into a Paralympic physical education unit. According to the article, these role models can be used in a variety of ways including as speakers, demonstrating Paralympic sports, and helping teach the sport to students.
- Cyborg and Supercrip: The Paralympics Technology and the (Dis)empowerment of Disabled Athletes, opens in a new tab, Howe, D.P, Sociology, Volume 45(5), pp.868-882, (2011). Technology has created a divide between different impairment groups with the Paralympic movement and also amongst ‘developed’ and ‘developing’ nations. This article questions whether the advances in technology are actually empowering disabled athletes.
- Winyarr Ganbina - Women Arise, opens in a new tab, Victoria University, Outback Academy Australia, Paralympics Australia, (2022). For the first time in Australia, Victoria University in partnership with Outback Academy Australia and Paralympics Australia have recorded the experiences of Indigenous women with a disability who play sport. Provides insight and resources for sport organisations to improve access to sport for people with disability, in particular people from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island backgrounds.
- Checklist for an inclusive community sports organisation, opens in a new tab, Outback Academy Australia – Red Dust Heelers, (2022). A range of actions that sport organisations can implement to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for Indigenous people with a disability, as players and leaders in sport.
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