Physical education and sports of children with disabilities and developmental difficulties in Serbia: A review of national empirical research (2010-2025)

This paper presents a systematic review of national empirical research on physical education and sport for children with disabilities and developmental difficulties in Serbia. The aim of the study was to examine the thematic orientation, methodological characteristics, and main findings of national empirical studies published between 2010 and 2025. The search encompassed national scientific journals in the fields of pedagogy, special education and rehabilitation, sport, and physical education, as well as the SCIndex Serbia database. Twenty empirical studies were included in the final analysis and systematized into three thematic areas: intervention studies on the effects of physical activity and sport, descriptivecomparative studies on the motor and morphological characteristics of this population, and studies on teachers' attitudes and self-efficacy in the context of inclusive physical education. Findings indicate that structured physical activity programs lead to positive changes in the motor, functional, and psychosocial domains of development; that children with disabilities and developmental difficulties achieve significantly lower scores on motor ability tests compared to typically developing peers, with balance consistently emerging as the most affected domain and that teachers report moderately positive attitudes toward inclusive physical education alongside insufficient specific professional competence for its implementation. The results highlight the need for methodologically stronger research and systematic improvements in teacher professional development in the field of adapted physical education in Serbia.