Article People with intellectual disability and their families’ perspectives of Special Olympics Ireland: Qualitative findings from the SOPHIE study Kirsty Bowers Dublin City University, Ireland Deidre Corby Dublin City University, Ireland Veronica Lambert Dublin City University, Ireland Anthony Staines Dublin City University, Ireland Treasa McVeigh Dublin City University, Ireland Michael McKeon Dublin City University, Ireland Edel Hoey Dublin City University, Ireland Sarahjane Belton Dublin City University, Ireland Sarah Meegan Dublin City University, Ireland Denise Walsh Dublin City University, Ireland Dominic Tre ´pel University of York, UK Peter Griffin Queen’s University Belfast, UK Mary Rose Sweeney Dublin City University, Ireland Date accepted: 19 October 2015 Abstract Previous research has highlighted that while involvement in Special Olympics can have benefits for athletes and their families, there can also be many barriers to participation. This qualitative study, which was part of a large mixed-method study, examined the experiences and perspectives of people with intellectual disability, their families and staff who work with them, about Special Olympics Ireland (SOI). A total of 47 participants (15 athletes, 6 non-athletes, 18 family members and 8 staff members) participated in focus group and individual interviews. Supplemental data, gathered as part of the larger study extracted from open-ended survey questions completed by 97 family members also informed this element. Findings revealed four main themes: impact of participation on athletes, impact of involvement on families, barriers to participation and how to enhance participation rates. Involvement in Special Olympics impacted positively on the quality of life of athletes and families. Enhanced availability of user-friendly information and service accessibility were important drivers identified for enhancing participation rates in Special Olympics. Keywords intellectual disability, qualitative, quality of life, Special Olympics Corresponding author: Mary Rose Sweeney, School of Nursing and Human Sciences1, Dublin City University, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, Ireland. Email: maryrose.sweeney@dcu.ie Journal of Intellectual Disabilities 1–17 ª The Author(s) 2015 Reprints and permission: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1744629515617059 jid.sagepub.com by guest on January 1, 2016 jid.sagepub.com Downloaded from