Does physical activity improve adaptive behaviour, fitness, and quality of life of adults with intellectual disability?

Abstract

The effects of a physical activity program on adaptive behaviour, motor proficiency, fitness, and quality of life of 16 adults with intellectual disability (ID) were analysed. Portugueseversions of Adaptive Behavior Scale, Personal Outcomes Scale, Bruininsky-Oseretsky MotorProficiency Test, and Fullerton scale were applied twice before, after, and one month after theprogram. Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon tests were used and Bonferroni manual correction wasperformed to establish a new p-value. The control group stabilized performance over time, theexperimental group improved in most domains, such as socialization (p <0.005), responsibility(p <0.005), and arm curl (p <0.01). Our findings call for tailor-made interventions to improvePA levels among adults with ID