International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the second edition of our Special Issue. The first edition attracted the interest of researchers worldwide, and eight peer-reviewed papers were published. The publications that are freely available for download are listed at the following:

IJERPH website: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph/special_issues/movement-visial.

Individuals with visual impairments are considered high risk given the dangerous levels of overweight/obesity and sedentary behavior, as well as difficulties with movement skill competence. In fact, difficulties with movement skills are associated with negative self-perception and poor self-concept, for which individuals with visual impairments are highly susceptible. Although there is an emergent and limited evidence base that includes descriptive and quasi-experimental research designs, much more research is required. Specifically, more research is needed to better understand the role of movement competence (in all ages) as an underlying mechanism driving positive developmental trajectories for health and decisions surrounding the adoption of a physically active or a sedentary lifestyle. Increased understanding can lead to the design of improved intervention strategies. However, to understand the efficacy of intervention and also improve knowledge of the underlying mechanisms supporting positive developmental trajectories for health, psychometrically solid assessments (across all variables of interest) are needed which are specifically designed for individuals with visual impairments across all ages. Papers addressing these topics are invited for this Special Issue. Here are some examples, though authors are not limited to these choices:

Predictors of physical activity or sedentary behaviors including, but not limited to, movement skill, psychosocial, and environmental factors;
Evaluating the psychometrics of tools to assess any of the above variables of interest for individuals of all ages with visual impairments;
Longitudinal, cross-sectional, descriptive, and qualitative inquiries are all encouraged for submission.

Dr. Ali S. Brian
Prof. Dr. Pamela Beach
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (1 paper)

Research

17 pages, 515 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Barriers and Challenges for Visually Impaired Students in PE—An Interview Study with Students in Austria, Germany, and the USA

by Sebastian Ruin, Justin A. Haegele, Martin Giese and Jana Baumgärtner

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(22), 7081; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20227081 - 19 Nov 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1966

Abstract

Physical education (PE) is an important part of school education worldwide, and at the same time, almost the only subject that explicitly deals with body and movement. PE is therefore of elementary importance in the upbringing of young people. This also applies to children with visual impairments. However, existing findings on participation and belonging in PE as well as on physical and motor development reveal that this group of children and adolescents is noticeably disadvantaged in this respect. Against this background, this paper aims to explore fundamental barriers and challenges across different types of schools, types of schooling, and countries from the perspective of visually impaired children. The qualitative interview study with 22 children with visual impairments at different types of schools in three countries (Austria, Germany, USA) reveals that none of the respondents could escape the power of social distinctions and related problematic and existing hierarchies. Hence, ideas of normality and associated values remain the main challenge for all of them. However, the type-forming analysis provides important insight across settings on how visually impaired children differ on this, allowing for greater sensitivity to the concerns of children with visual impairments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 2nd Edition: Movement Studies for Individuals with Visual Impairments)

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