The Process of Becoming an Active Disabled Person - the Psycho-Social Mechanisms of Sport’s Influence on Physically Disabled Individuals

The article raises the notions of changes that take place in the life of a physically handicapped person which are caused by their engagement in a sports activity. In the article I make an attempt to reconstruct the detailed mechanisms of sport’s influence on the life of a physically handicapped person, pointing to the manner in which physical activity supports the reconstruction of self-perception, a redefinition of their role, and the acquisition of a cognitive perspective of people meaningful to the individual. I refer to the subjective perspective of those researched, rendering their own point of view into the major subject of analysis. Hence, the research exploits qualitative data, collected during in-depth free interviews and observations conducted among the disabled practicing sports. Analysis and interpretation of the research material was performed in accordance with the procedures of grounded theory.