Sport and recreation for Indigenous peoples with neurodevelopmental disabilities in Canada: an empty scoping review and call to action

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Bruno, G., Andreasen, S., Ahmad, M., Littlechild, T., Roy, C., Cuzzolino, B., Sokol, E., Landon, W., & McMorris, C. A. (2026). Sport and recreation for Indigenous peoples with neurodevelopmental disabilities in Canada: an empty scoping review and call to action. Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences, 7, Article 1826523. https://doi.org/10.3389/fresc.2026.1826523

Publication date: 5 Aug 2026 Added to AutiHub: 24 Oct 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
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Authors

Publication authors
9
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 9 (11.1%)
  1. Grant Bruno
  2. Stephanie Andreasen
  3. Mariam Ahmad
  4. Tierney Littlechild
  5. Court Roy
  1. Brianna Cuzzolino
  2. Everett Sokol
  3. Will Landon *
  4. Carly A. McMorris

Abstract

Sport and recreation are central to physical health, social inclusion, and community well-being. Indigenous Peoples and individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities (NDDs) both experience systemic barriers to participation; however, the intersection of these identities remains underexplored. This Indigenous-led scoping review examined the current state of published and grey literature on sport and recreation for Indigenous Peoples with NDDs in Canada and considered what research, policy, and practice gaps are evident in, or suggested by, this literature. Guided by PRISMA-ScR, comprehensive searches of academic and grey literature databases were conducted using terms related to Indigenous identity, neurodevelopmental disability, and sport or recreation. Using the PRISMA-ScR, two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts, and full texts according to predefined inclusion criteria. Of 326 records identified, zero studies met eligibility criteria. The absence of eligible studies indicates a critical gap in research, policy, and programming. Indigenous Peoples with NDDs remain invisible within sport and recreation scholarship, underscoring the urgent need for Indigenous-led, culturally grounded, and inclusive research initiatives.

Bibliography cited by this reference

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Cited bibliography overview

These indicators describe the bibliography cited by this publication. An author name is counted each time it appears in one cited reference, so the same person can be counted more than once. Names not yet linked to an author already present in AutiHub are treated as unknown, not as non-autistic. Last computed: 28 Oct 2026 01:01.

Cited references
54
With a DOI
38
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
16
2 / 54 (3.7%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
4 / 54 (7.4%)
References with detected author names
53 / 54 (98.1%)
Without detected author names
1
Without a structured title
3
Without a stable identifier
16
References with raw author names still to review
0
References with external metadata lookup issues
0
These indicators apply to cited references displayed on this page, after technical duplicates have been merged. A reference without a DOI can still support author statistics when a title and author names are available.
Author names detected in the cited bibliography
201
From DOI or external metadata
201
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
0
14 / 201 (7.0%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 187 / 201 (93.0%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
2 / 201 (1.0%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 2 / 14 (14.3%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 2 / 198 (1.0%).
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