Abstract
Recreation can be broadly defined as an enjoyable activity that allows participants to exercise choice and control (Austin, 2001). Recreation, leisure, and sport encompasses many activities across the globe. Given that recreation, leisure, and sport activities are a vital part of an individual’s societal, behavioral, and emotional well-being, there are many who are unable to participate due to challenges, beliefs, and stigmas. Across the globe, persons with disabilities face challenges in their life domains; however there has been minimal research as to why persons with disabilities lack participation in recreational activities in the countries of Honduras and Tahiti. The purpose of the study aims to identify cultural perspectives of disability and how perspective may influence the participation in recreation of persons with disabilities in Honduras and Tahiti. The study was conducted by gathering information from two pre-existing studies which included two focus groups from persons in Honduras and Tahiti. From the data four themes emerged with the central theme concluding that the lack of recreation participation from persons with disabilities stems from the community’s lack of knowledge about persons with disabilities and the need for education awareness. Future research should replicate the focus groups to gather more qualitative data to support the theme of education awareness, as well as develop a comprehensive understanding of education awareness and perceptions of persons with disabilities over time. Future research should also consider gathering more data on the beliefs, experiences, perspectives, and knowledge on recreation, leisure, and sports as it relates to individuals with disabilities.