Martial Arts and Well-being: Connecting communities and promoting health

by Carol Fuller, Viki Lloyd

Overview

Martial Arts and Well-Being explores how martial arts as a source of learning can contribute in important ways to health and well-being, as well as provide other broader social benefits. Using psychological and sociological theory related to behaviour, ritual, perception and reality construction, the book seeks to illustrate, with empirical data, how individuals make sense of and perceive the value of martial arts in their lives.

This book draws on data from over 500 people, across all age ranges, and powerfully demonstrates that participating in martial arts can have a profound influence on the construction of behaviour patterns that are directly linked to lifestyle and health. Making individual connections regarding the benefits of practice, improvements to health and well-being – regardless of whether these improvements are ‘true’ in a medical sense – this book offers an important and original window into the importance of beliefs to health and well-being as well as the value of thinking about education as a process of life-long learning.

This book will be of great interest to a range of audiences, including researchers, academics and postgraduate students interested in sports and exercise psychology, martial art studies and health and well-being. It should also be of interest to sociologists, social workers and martial arts practitioners.

The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com/doi/view/10.4324/9781315448084, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781032082523
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/02/2021
Pages:	130
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Carol Fuller is a professor of education and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy at the Institute of Education, University of Reading, Reading, UK.

Viki Lloyd is the director of the Reading Acupuncture Clinic and the lead instructor of Sei Shin Kan School of Karate and Reading Chenjiagou Taijiquan GB, Reading, UK.

Table of Contents

List of figures and tables

Acknowledgements

1 Introduction

Part 1

Scope of the research and structure of the book

Part 2

Methods

Research design

Data collection

Sample

Survey

Interviews

Data analysis

Survey

Interviews

2 Theories of learning behaviour and reality construction – their value in understanding health

and well-being

Introduction

Exploring individual attitudes and behaviour

Behaviourism

Social cognitive theory

Four main sources of self-efficacy

Self-efficacy and human health and well-being

Society and behaviour

Culture and group behaviour

Martial arts, health and well-being

Eastern philosophy and its relevance to martial arts

Chapter summary

3 Teachers of martial arts

Introduction

Sample

Motivations for taking up a martial art

Physical

Health

Well-being

General

Health and health awareness

Well-being

Additional benefits

Culture

Community

Inclusion

Challenges to teaching martial arts

Value of teaching

Access to martial arts

Chapter summary

4 Health and physical well-being and the teaching and learning of martial arts

Introduction

Sample

Motivations for taking up a martial art

Health

General physical well-being

Support for health: awareness and benefits

Health awareness

Health benefits

Teaching and learning

Learning and the martial arts teacher

Qualities in the teacher

Challenges to learning

Being a martial artist

Chapter summary

5 Well-being

Introduction

Sample

Martial arts and well-being

Well-being and confidence

Intellectual

Learning

Culture and ethics

Social

Management of stress and the link to health and well-being

Chapter summary

6 Connecting communities and promoting health

Introduction

Motivations to learn

Perceived benefits of martial arts

Health benefits

Health awareness

Well-being

The social context of learning

The role of the teacher

Identity in martial arts

Connecting communities and promoting health

Chapter summary

7 Conclusion

Significance of the research

Recommendations for policy and practice

References

Index