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Sport as a Leisure Occupation in Occupational Therapy Literature: A Scoping Review
Daniel A Costalonga1, Alyson J Crozier2, Brad J Stenner3
1Daniel A. Costalonga, BOccThy (Hon), was Student, School of Health Sciences, Division of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, at the time of this research.
Importance:
The focus of occupational therapy is often on personal care, life skills, and daily living. Sport, as a type of leisure activity, can also provide benefits to health and well-being. Occupational therapy practitioners should therefore promote the role of sport in the lives of clients.
Objective:
To investigate the extent, range, and nature of peer-reviewed occupational therapy literature investigating sport as a leisure occupation.
Data Sources:
The following databases were searched: Embase, MEDLINE, OTseeker, PsycINFO, PubMed, and SPORTDiscus.
Study Selection And Data Collection:
We identified published studies investigating competitive sport in occupational therapy research or practice. Included studies investigated adult participants (age ≥18 yr) participating in sport, had a clear occupational therapy input, and were written in the English language.
Findings:
Six studies met the inclusion criteria. Only 2 of the 6 studies identified through the search strategy were conducted after 2004, diagnosis and outcome measures varied widely, and sport as a leisure occupation was found to have positive individual outcomes.
Conclusions And Relevance:
Opportunities exist to investigate sport as a leisure occupation and its involvement in occupational therapy practice. Future research may contribute to positive outcomes and experiences for clients who receive occupational therapy.
What This Article Adds:
This scoping review describes literature about sport as an occupation and highlights the opportunities for practitioners and researchers to incorporate sport as a leisure occupation.
