The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of physical activity participation on social interaction and psychological wellbeing of people with disabilities. 350 adults with physical disabilities who were members of physical activities clubs in Busan, Ulsan, Kyungnam areas, were selected using a purposeful sampling technique. A questionnaire was designed to determine four psychological dimensions: (a) personalization (Mittal & Lassar, 1996; Solomon & Czeipiel, 1985); (b) social networking and support (Kim, 2004); (c) psychological wellbeing (Hwang, 2009); and (d) physical activity participation. Frequency analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and multiple regression analysis were conducted to analyze the data. The results gained through this process were described as below: Physical activity participation in adults with physical disabilities significantly influenced contact intensity, openness, and cooperation level (subcategories of social interaction). Further, physical activity participation was positively associated with past satisfaction, present satisfaction, and future satisfaction of physical activity participation (subcategories of psychological wellbeing). It was reported that physical activity participation had negative regress weights, indicating individuals who participate more in physical activity participation, were more likely to alleviate feeling of alienation, recover from social relationship break, and regain form role loss. Moreover, there was a significant relationship between social interaction, and positive and negative psychological wellbeing.
To enhance the overall quality of live in individuals with physical disabilities, it is critical to promote physical activity participation which positively influence social interaction and psychological wellbeing. Further, there is a need to promote development of various community based physical activity programs that anyone, regardless of disabilities, can participate.