Pere Molina

Physical Education Pedagogy: an analysis of research published in Spanish journals (2005–2014)

ABSTRACT Background: The majority of reviews related to Physical Education Pedagogy (PEP) refer to the English-speaking world. Some of these assert the need to obtain more data and provide reviews of what has been investigated in languages other than English to be able to assess the current state of the field internationally. Purpose: The aim of this study was to identify, categorise, and analyse articles on PEP published in Spanish sport science journals during the last decade (2005–2014). Participants and setting: A total of 13 journals were selected: 8 were indexed in the Scopus databases, and 5 were added based on expert judgement due to their importance in the field of Spanish PEP. Research design: The study uses a quantitative approach that is exploratory and descriptive in nature and includes document research techniques. Data collection: The identification of all articles published between 2005 and 2014 (both inclusive) was performed. The search yielded 3258 published articles, from which articles whose content was not related to PEP were eliminated. The final sample was 534 articles. Data analysis: The articles that comprise the final sample were analysed and classified according to their content and article type. Findings: Of the 3258 articles published in the last decade in these journals, only 534 (16.39%) address content in the PEP field of study. With regard to sub-areas, half of the research conducted pertains to teaching (50.00%), followed by curriculum (25.66%). The combination of both sub-areas comprises the third largest percentage (9.74%). Teacher education is the least addressed sub-area, with 8.80%, and its intersections with teaching and curriculum in no case exceed 3%. In terms of article type, 38.39% are theoretical studies, historical studies, or essays. One-fourth (25.09%) are quantitative empirical research, and one-fifth (22.47%) refer to experiences in education or innovation. These three article types are predominant, comprising 85.95% of the total. The remaining articles are divided into studies related to qualitative empirical research (7.68%), those conducting empirical research using a mixed methodology (quantitative and qualitative) (5.06%), and a testimonial for review articles (1.31%). Conclusions: In the decade studied, an increase in the gap between the number of articles published in Spanish journals specialising in physical education and sport and the percentage of articles related to PEP is observed. Of these journals, those publishing the most articles on PEP were included by expert judgement and are not indexed in Scopus. The implication is an academically worrying state for the field in the Spanish context, differing significantly from the English context.