The Use of Single-Subject Research Methods in Sport Sciences: A Systematic Review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18432524Keywords:
Single-subject research, sport sciences, adapted physical activity, multiple-baseline design, individuals with special needsAbstract
The purpose of this study was to systematically review national and international research conducted using single-subject research methods in the field of sport sciences and to identify methodological trends in the literature. Accordingly, studies published between 2020 and 2025 in the international literature and studies published without any time restriction in the national literature were searched. International searches were conducted in the PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases, while national searches were performed in the DergiPark database. Following the searches based on predefined keywords, studies that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were analyzed using descriptive analysis. The findings indicated that single-subject research designs are widely used in the international literature, whereas only three studies employing these methods were identified in the national sport sciences literature. The reviewed studies predominantly employed multiple-baseline across-participants designs, concurrent multiple-baseline designs, and AB-based designs, and the interventions mainly consisted of adapted physical activity, sport-specific training, and clinical exercise protocols. The results demonstrate that single-subject research methods enable the monitoring of individual performance changes and the detailed evaluation of intervention effectiveness in sport sciences; however, these methods have not yet become widespread at the national level. Based on these findings, recommendations were developed for the broader application of single-subject research methods across different sport branches and diverse groups with special needs.
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