Flow experience during Taiji practice - an oberservational study in healthy subjects

Background: Taiji is a mind-body practice, characterised by gentle and mindful body movements originating from Chinese martial arts. Studies investigating the reasons why people engage into Taiji and maintain their practice routine have emphasised extrinsic motivational outcome related aspects. The relevance of intrinsic motivation (i.e. motivation that comes from inside an individual and is driven by an interest or enjoyment in the performed activity itself) has not yet been examined. The autotelic aspect of intrinsic motivation is an essential precondition for experiencing flow, a state where subjects fully immersed into the performance of an activity report to be highly concentrated, optimally challenged and in control of the action. The aim of our study was to assess to which degree flow was experienced in the course of a 3 month Taiji-beginners class and to examine the relationship between the degree of flow experience at the end of the course and the Taiji practice behaviour. Materials and Methods: 28 healthy subjects participated in a Taiji beginners course (2 x 1h per week for 3 months). Flow values were measured at week 1, 6 and 12 by using the Flow-Kurz-Skala (FKS) questionnaire. Data were analysed by using ANOVA with repeated measurements, students t-Tests for comparison with normative values, and pearson correlation coefficients were calculated. Results: In the course of the 12 weeks Taiji training, mean flow values increased continuously (F(1.34, 8.92) = 19.49; p < .001). The mean value for experienced flow during Taiji practice at week 12 (M = 5.54; SD = ±.77) was significantly above the norm value (t = 3.705; df = 27; p < .01). Since average course attendance rate was high (86.8 %), a ceiling effect is assumed, thus flow values did not correlate with course adherence (r = .236; p = .227). However, a significant correlation was found between flow values at week 12 and practice at home (r = .439; p < .05). Conclusion: Our findings emphasise the potential value of intrinsic motivational aspects inherent in Taiji practice for developing a regular practice routine. The impact of increased flow experience on health related outcome measures, and its relevance in clinical trials is subject of further research.

Taiji practice in Switzerland: a short report

Over the past two decades the demand for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the general population has continuously increased in Switzerland and is frequently implemented in medical teaching. Together with Qigong, Taiji is commonly regarded as a mind-body practice integrating TCM principles of health and longevity. This form of slow intentional body movements is rooted in ancient Chinese martial arts and aims to strengthen and relax the physical body and mind, enhance the natural flow of qi, and improve health, personal development, and self-defense. In the West, as the preventive and therapeutic benefits of Taiji practice are gaining empirical support, the popularity of this form of low impact mind-body practice is increasing. The present article aims to provide a brief overview of the development and current status of Taiji practice in Switzerland with an outlook on future perspectives.

Complementary Medicine in Nursing Homes - Results of a Mixed Methods Pilot Study

Background ‘Kneipp Therapy’ (KT) is a form of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) that includes a combination of hydrotherapy, herbal medicine, mind-body medicine, physical activities, and healthy eating. Since 2007, some nursing homes for older adults in Germany began to integrate CAM in the form of KT in care. The study investigated how KT is used in daily routine care and explored the health status of residents and caregivers involved in KT. Methods We performed a cross-sectional pilot study with a mixed methods approach that collected both quantitative and qualitative data in four German nursing homes in 2011. Assessments in the quantitative component included the Quality of Life in Dementia (QUALIDEM), the Short Form 12 Health Survey (SF-12), the Barthel-Index for residents and the Work Ability Index (WAI) and SF-12 for caregivers. The qualitative component addressed the residents’ and caregivers’ subjectively experienced changes after integration of KT. It was conceptualized as an ethnographic rapid appraisal by conducting participant observation and semi-structured interviews in two of the four nursing homes. Results The quantitative component included 64 residents (53 female, 83.2 ± 8.1 years (mean and SD)) and 29 caregivers (all female, 42.0 ± 11.7 years). Residents were multimorbid (8 ± 3 diagnoses), and activities of daily living were restricted (Barthel-Index 60.6 ± 24.4). The caregivers’ results indicated good work ability (WAI 37.4 ± 5.1), health related quality of life was superior to the German sample (SF-12 physical CSS 49.2 ± 8.0; mental CSS 54.1 ± 6.6). Among both caregivers and residents, 89% considered KT to be positive for well-being. The qualitative analysis showed that caregivers perceived emotional and functional benefits from more content and calmer residents, a larger variety in basic care practices, and a more self-determined scope of action. Residents reported gains in attention and caring, and recognition of their lay knowledge. Conclusion Residents showed typical characteristics of nursing home inhabitants. Caregivers demonstrated good work ability. Both reported to have benefits from KT. The results provide a good basis for future projects, e.g. controlled studies to evaluate the effects of CAM in nursing homes.

Changes in self-reported symptoms of depression and physical wellbeing in healthy individuals following a Taiji beginner course – Results of a randomized controlled trial

Introduction: Taiji is a mind-body practice being increasingly investigated for its therapeutic benefits in a broad range of mental and physical conditions. The aim of the present study was to investigate potential preventive effects of Taiji practice in healthy individuals with regard to their depressive symptomatology and physical wellbeing. Methods: A total of 70 healthy Taiji novices (mean age 35.5 years) were randomly assigned to a Taiji intervention group, i.e. Taiji beginner course (Yang-Style Taiji, 2 hours per week, 12 weeks) or a waiting control group. Self-reported symptoms of depression (CES-D) and physical wellbeing (FEW-16) were assessed at baseline, at the end of the intervention, as well as two months later. Results: Physical wellbeing in the Taiji group significantly increased when comparing baseline to follow up (FEW-16 sum scale T(27) = 3.94, p = 0.001, 95% CI 0.17 - 0.55). Pearson’s correlation coefficients displayed a strong negative relationship between self-reported symptoms of depression and physical wellbeing (p’s < 0.001, r‘s ≥ -.54). Conclusions: In this randomized controlled trial we found significant evidence that a Taiji beginner course of three months duration elicits positive effects with respect to physical wellbeing in healthy individuals, with improvements pronouncing over time. Physical wellbeing was shown to have a strong relationship with depressive symptoms. Based on these results, the consideration of Taiji as one therapeutic option in the development of multimodal approaches in the prevention of depression seems justifiable.

Seeing and identifying with a virtual body decreases pain perception

Pain and the conscious mind (or the self) are experienced in our body. Both are intimately linked to the subjective quality of conscious experience. Here, we used virtual reality technology and visuo-tactile conflicts in healthy subjects to test whether experimentally induced changes of bodily self-consciousness (self-location; self-identification) lead to changes in pain perception. We found that visuo-tactile stroking of a virtual body but not of a control object led to increased pressure pain thresholds and self-location. This increase was not modulated by the synchrony of stroking as predicted based on earlier work. This differed for self-identification where we found as predicted that synchrony of stroking increased self-identification with the virtual body (but not a control object), and positively correlated with an increase in pain thresholds. We discuss the functional mechanisms of self-identification, self-location, and the visual perception of human bodies with respect to pain perception.

Balancing the mind: vestibular induced facilitation of egocentric mental transformations

The body schema is a key component in accomplishing egocentric mental transformations, which rely on bodily reference frames. These reference frames are based on a plurality of different cognitive and sensory cues among which the vestibular system plays a prominent role. We investigated whether a bottom-up influence of vestibular stimulation modulates the ability to perform egocentric mental transformations. Participants were significantly faster to make correct spatial judgments during vestibular stimulation as compared to sham stimulation. Interestingly, no such effects were found for mental transformation of hand stimuli or during mental transformations of letters, thus showing a selective influence of vestibular stimulation on the rotation of whole-body reference frames. Furthermore, we found an interaction with the angle of rotation and vestibular stimulation demonstrating an increase in facilitation during mental body rotations in a direction congruent with rightward vestibular afferents. We propose that facilitation reflects a convergence in shared brain areas that process bottom-up vestibular signals and top-down imagined whole-body rotations, including the precuneus and tempero-parietal junction. Ultimately, our results show that vestibular information can influence higher-order cognitive processes, such as the body schema and mental imagery.