Does Culture Matter? An Exploratory Study of Culture in the Implementation of an Adaptive Sports Program.

THAILAND; UNITED States

There is limited research surrounding the effectiveness of program implementation, and the research that does exist often considers culture as a minor contributing factor. In this study, culture is re-framed as a major contributing factor of program implementation using an international adaptive sports program as an example. The program was planned and implemented by a team of U.S. facilitators for a group of Thai students and professors in Thailand. The purpose of this study was to understand the cultural processes that influence program implementation in the context of adaptive sport. The research team conducted observations of the program delivery and semi-structured interviews with the U.S. program facilitators. Guided by Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions, the findings consider how culture influenced program implementation. Building from existing program implementation models, this study proposes a modified model of program implementation in which culture is positioned as a factor influencing all aspects of program implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Therapeutic Recreation Journal is the property of Sagamore Publishing and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)