|
Yoga improves attention and self-esteem in underprivileged girl student
Jaspal Kaur Sethi1, HR Nagendra2, Tikhe Sham Ganpat1
1 Department of Yoga and Management Studies, S-VYASA University, Bangalore, India
2 Department of Yoga and Management Studies and Chancellor, S-VYASA University, Bangalore, India
| Date of Web Publication | 30-Sep-2013 |
Correspondence Address:
Tikhe Sham Ganpat
Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana University, (Prashanti Kutiram), Bangalore
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/2277-9531.119043
Background: A student under optimal stress does bring out his or her best; however, extreme stress can result in mental health problems and deteriorates their academic performance. Students who esteem themselves low are most likely to engage in destructive and self-destructive behaviors. Moreover, excessive stress is harmful to academic performance and may lead to dropping out in student. Can Yoga be of benefit in students for improving their attention and self-esteem (SE)? Objective: To assess attention and SE in girls undergoing Integrated Yoga Module (IYM). Materials and Methods: Sixty low-income high school girls with 15.17 + 0.64 years of mean age participated in this single group pre-post study. The data was collected before and after 5 days of IYM. Statistical Analysis: Means, standard deviations, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, and Wilcoxon signed rank test were used to analyze the data with the help of SPSS 16. Results: The data analysis showed 9.04% increase ( P = 0.001) in SE scores, whereas d2 test for attention revealed 10.12% increase ( P < 0.001) in total number of symbols processed scores and 44.73% decrease ( P < 0.001) in total number of errors. Conclusion: The present study suggests that of IYM can result in improvement of attention and SE among students and thereby enhancing their mental health and can help them in improving their academic achievement. Efforts aimed at reducing mental health problems among students may focus more on implementing effective and culturally acceptable interventions, such as Yoga, counseling, and social support. Additional well-designed studies are needed before a strong recommendation can be made. Keywords: Attention, girl students, integrated yoga module, mental health, self-esteem
How to cite this article:
Sethi JK, Nagendra H R, Ganpat TS. Yoga improves attention and self-esteem in underprivileged girl student. J Edu Health Promot 2013;2:55 |
How to cite this URL:
Sethi JK, Nagendra H R, Ganpat TS. Yoga improves attention and self-esteem in underprivileged girl student. J Edu Health Promot [serial online] 2013 [cited 2023 Sep 24];2:55. Available from: https://www.jehp.net//text.asp?2013/2/1/55/119043 |
| Introduction | |  |
Attention is an essential element of cognition and has been characterized in two ways, that is, either as a resource or capacity or as a skill of resource deployment. Attention is the capacity to attend to a task in hand for a required period of time. [1] The capacities to study and listen to a lecture for an extended length of time are examples of sustained attention. [2]
The self-regulation method derived from autogenic training and Zen meditation, which elicits a state of 'relaxed alertness,' also, increases attention span. [3] Meditation increases attention span. [4] Ancient Yogic texts suggest that a combination of both "calming" and "stimulating" yogic practices helps in increasing the span of attention. [5] The effects of Yoga on cognitive functions have shown improvement in memory and attention. [6] Cognitive reactions of stress result in an inability to concentrate. [7] It was reported that transcendental meditation reduces stress [8] and improves attention resulting in enhanced academic performance. [9] Yogic practices like asana, pranayama, vedic chanting, and meditation enhances attention, self-esteem (SE) [10] and improves visual and spatial memory. [11] Tower of London test done on girl students practicing Yoga showed improvement in attention. [12]
Mendelson et al. in their study on mindfulness approaches have shown that students in underserved urban communities are at risk for a range of negative outcomes related to stress, including social-emotional difficulties, behavior problems, and poor academic performance. [13] Yoga may improve adjustment among chronically stressed and disadvantaged students by enhancing SE. Stress has an implication for low SE in students, and it was reported that regular practice of Yoga by medical students for a longer period may possibly result in improved management of their daily stress. [14] Several studies have been published analyzing the effect of different aspects of Yoga including cleansing techniques, physical postures, breathing practices, relaxation techniques and meditation on attention, and SE. [15],[16],[17],[18],[19],[20] However, the changes that actual happens in attention and SE performance of the high school girls, especially belonging to the low-income segment of the society undergoing Integrated Yoga Module (IYM), has not been reported adequately so far. Hence, the present study has been designed to assess the efficacy of IYM on attention and SE in low-income high school girls.
Objectives
This study is to assess improvement in attention and SE in low-income high school girls undergoing IYM.
| Materials and Methods | | |
Subjects
Sixty low-income high school girls in the age range of 14 to 17 years from underprivileged and lower income sections of urban community were selected for the study based on the following inclusion and exclusion criteria [Table 1].
Inclusion criteria
- School girls in the age range of 14 to 17 years
- School girls from underprivileged and lower income sections of urban community.
Exclusion criteria
- Girls with neurological or psychological disturbances
- Girls with learning disabilities and cognitive deficits
- Girls under medication for health problem
Design
A single group pre-post study
PRE→POST→5 DAYS OF IYM
Source
Maharani Girl's High School, Mysore, India.
Informed consent
An informed consent from the school head was obtained on the behalf of the students, as their acting guardian. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of S-VYASA University.
Intervention
All the students participated in the IYM for 5 days. The module was selected from Integrated Approach of Yoga Therapy (IAYT) for positive health. [10],[12],[20] IYM was chosen to bring about an all-round development at physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual level. Yoga Practices helps to increase relaxation and balance the mind, body, and the spirit. Yoga in its full form combines physical postures, breathing exercises, meditation, and a distinct philosophy. This way, yoga can enhance attention and SE faculties in students and helping them to obtain academic excellence [Table 2].
Assessments
The Rosenberg Self-esteem (RSE) scale is widely used for SE measurement developed by Rosenberg in 1965. [21] The scale measures SE, which is a positive evaluation of one's attributes and sense of self-worthiness. It consists of 10 items on Likert scale. Participants indicate their agreement-disagreement level for each item along a four-point scale, ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree." The maximum possible score is 40, and the minimum is 10. Higher scores in the scale indicate higher self-esteem. The scores below 15 suggest low esteem of the children. Multiple studies have been conducted to investigate the validity and reliability of the RSE scale, whereas some studies have shown that the scale is a valid and reliable one-dimensional measure of self-esteem. In summary, it appears that the internal reliability and factor structure of the RSE is psychometrically sound across many languages and cultures of different nations. [22]
The d2 test is a cancellation test of attention and concentration. The test measures processing speed, rule compliance, and quality of performance, allowing estimation of individual attention and concentration performance. The test items consist of the letters d and P with one to four dashes, arranged either individually or in pairs above and below the letter. The subject must scan across each line to identify and cross out each d with two dashes. In the manual, these items (correct hits) are called "relevant items." All other combinations of letters and lines are considered "irrelevant," because they should not be crossed out. The one-page d2 test form consists of 14 lines, each with 47 characters, for a total of 658 items. The subject is allowed 20 seconds per line. The internal consistency and convergent and discriminates validity of the d2 test, a cancellation test of attention and concentration, has been examined on adolescent and adult through many studies to establish its reliability and validity. Results suggested that the d2 test is an internally consistent and valid measure of visual scanning accuracy and speed. [23]
Data collection
The d2 test of attention and SE data was collected before (pre) and after (post) the 5 days of IYM by a person not connected with intervention and guided by a psychologist. The group was first given the RSE, after which d2 test of attention questionnaire was given for filling. The d2 tests of attention and SE data were collected systematically, and scoring of the questionnaires was carried out as per the instructions given in the manuals.
Analysis
Statistical analysis was done with the help of Statistical Package for Social Sciences [SPSS]-16. The baseline data were tested using Kolmogorov- Smirnov test, which showed that the data were not normally distributed. Hence, Wilcoxon ranked sign test was used.
| Results | | |
The results showed that all the variables of d2 test of attention and SE were significantly increased when the post score was compared against the pre score. SE found not normally distributed (P < 0.05). Hence, we have run Wilcoxon sign rank test to compare pre versus post score of SE. There were significant increases in SE (9.04%, P < 0.01) [Table 3] and [Table 4].
| Discussion | | |
Physical activity is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle in adolescence. Results of earlier study had shown that SE correlated with bodily pain, and its improvement was correlated with mental health and depression (P < 0.05). [24] Previous report on SE revealed that damaged SE was associated with depressive symptoms, suicidal ideation, and loneliness. [25] It was reported that physical activity to be associated with socio-economic status and SE. Adolescents with higher socio-economic status were significantly more likely to report physical activity on ≥5 days/week and to report higher SE. In logistic regression, the association between socio-economic status and physical activity decreased after including SE, suggesting that at least a part of this association is mediated by SE. [26] Earlier studies also indicate that, in general, those with higher socio-economic status report higher SE than those with lower socio-economic status. [27] Students participating in Yoga reported fewer negative behaviors in response to stress and had better balance than a comparison group, suggesting improvements in well-being and positive behavior. Moreover, Yoga may also be used as a preventive intervention as well as a means of improving children's perceived well-being. [28] The present study is consistent with these findings, indicating that a systematic adoption of an IYM can result in better attention and SE among students.
| Conclusion | | |
The IYM module is found to show significant improvement in the attention and SE in high girl students. The study confirms that even short-term Yoga intervention in the form of IYM improves the SE and enhances the attention abilities of the high school children, paving way for academic excellence. The study gives scope for a long-term study in future, for more consistent results; and at the same time, additional well-designed studies are needed before a strong recommendation can be made.
Acknowledgement
0Authors acknowledge Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana University for granting permission to carry out this work.
| References | | |
| 1. | Posner MI. Chronometric explorations of mind. In: Hillsdale NJ, editor. UK: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates; 1978. 
|
| 2. | Rueckert L, Grafman J. Sustained attention deficits in patients with right frontal lesions. Neuropsychologia 1996;34:953-63.
[PUBMED] |
| 3. | Ikemi A, Tomita S, Kuroda M, Hayashida Y, Ikemi Y. Self-regulation method: Psychological, physiological and clinical considerations. An overview. Psychother Psychosom 1986;46:184-95.
[PUBMED] |
| 4. | Banquet JP, Bourzeix JC, Lesèvre N. Evoked potentials and vigilance states induced during the course of choice reaction time tests. Rev Electroencephalogr Neurophysiol Clin 1979;9:221-7.
|
| 5. | Telles S, Reddy SK, Nagendra HR. Oxygen consumption and respiration following two yoga relaxation techniques. Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback 2000;25:221-7.
[PUBMED] |
| 6. | Sharma VK, Das S, Mondal S, Goswami U, Gandhi A. Effect of Sahaj Yoga on neuro-cognitive functions in patients suffering from major depression. Indian J Physiol Pharmacol 2006;50:375-83.
[PUBMED] |
| 7. | Sailer HR, Schlacter J, Edwards MR. Stress: Causes, consequences, and coping strategies. Personnel 1982;59:35-48.
[PUBMED] |
| 8. | Michaels RR, Huber MJ, McCann DS. Evaluation of transcendental meditation as a method of reducing stress. Science 1976;192:1242-4.
[PUBMED] |
| 9. | Wallace RK, Mills PJ, Orme-Johnson DW, Dillbeck MC, Jacobe E. Modification of the paired H reflex through the transcendental meditation and TM-Sidhi program. Exp Neurol 1983;79:77-86.
[PUBMED] |
| 10. | Telles S, Hanumanthaiah B, Nagarathna R, Nagendra HR. Improvement in static motor performance following yogic training of school children. Percept Mot Skills 1993;76:1264-6.
[PUBMED] |
| 11. | Naveen KV, Nagarathna R, Nagendra HR, Telles S. Yoga breathing through a particular nostril increases spatial memory scores without lateralized effects. Psychol Rep 1997;81:555-61.
[PUBMED] |
| 12. | Manjunath NK, Telles S. Improved performance in the Tower of London test following yoga. Indian J Physiol Pharmacol 2001;45:351-4.
[PUBMED] |
| 13. | Mendelson T, Greenberg MT, Dariotis JK, Gould LF, Rhoades BL, Leaf PJ. Feasibility and preliminary outcomes of a school-based mindfulness intervention for urban youth. J Abnorm Child Psychol 2010;38:985-94.
|
| 14. | Parshad O, Richards A, Asnani M. Impact of yoga on haemodynamic function in healthy medical students. West Indian Med J 2011;60:148-52.
[PUBMED] |
| 15. | Narasimhan L, Nagarathna R, Nagendra H. Effect of integrated yogic practices on positive and negative emotions in healthy adults. Int J Yoga 2011;4:13-9.
[PUBMED]  |
| 16. | Vandana B, Saraswathy L, Pillai GK, Sunadaram KR, Kumar H. Meditation induces a positive response during stress events in young Indian adults. Int J Yoga 2011;4:64-70.
[PUBMED] |
| 17. | Ganpat TS, Nagendra HR. Yoga therapy for developing emotional intelligence in mid-life managers. J Midlife Health 2011;2:28-30.
[PUBMED] |
| 18. | Rani K, Tiwari S, Singh U, Agrawal G, Ghildiyal A, Srivastava N. Impact of Yoga Nidra on psychological general wellbeing in patients with menstrual irregularities: A randomized controlled trial. Int J Yoga 2011;4:20-5.
[PUBMED] |
| 19. | Deshpande S, Nagendra HR, Raghuram N. A randomized control trial of the effect of yoga on Gunas (personality) and Health in normal healthy volunteers. Int J Yoga 2008;1:2-10.
[PUBMED] |
| 20. | Deshpande S, Nagendra HR, Nagarathna R. A randomized control trial of the effect of yoga on Gunas (personality) and Self esteem in normal healthy volunteers. Int J Yoga 2009;2:13-21.
[PUBMED] |
| 21. | Rosenberg M. Society and the adolescent self-image. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press; 1965.
|
| 22. | Schmitt DP, Allik J. Simultaneous administration of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale in 53 nations: Exploring the universal and culture-specific features of global self-esteem. J Pers Soc Psychol 2005;89:623-42.
[PUBMED] |
| 23. | Bates ME, Lemay EP Jr. The d2 Test of attention: Construct validity and extensions in scoring techniques. J Int Neuropsychol Soc 2004;10:392-400.
[PUBMED] |
| 24. | Bahaeloo-Horeh S, Assari S. Students experience self-esteem improvement during mountaineering. Wilderness Environ Med 2008;19:181-5.
[PUBMED] |
| 25. | Berger DL, Silver EJ, Stein RE. Effects of yoga on inner-city children's well-being: A pilot study. Altern Ther Health Med 2009;15:36-42.
[PUBMED] |
| 26. | Creemers DH, Scholte RH, Engels RC, Prinstein MJ, Wiers RW. Implicit and explicit self-esteem as concurrent predictors of suicidal ideation, depressive symptoms, and loneliness. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry 2012;43:638-46.
[PUBMED] |
| 27. | Veselska Z, Madarasova Geckova A, Reijneveld SA, van Dijk JP. Socio-economic status and physical activity among adolescents: The mediating role of self-esteem. Public Health 2011;125:763-8.
[PUBMED] |
| 28. | Veselska Z, Madarasova Geckova A, Gajdosova B, Orosova O, van Dijk JP, Reijneveld SA. Economic differences in self-esteem of adolescents influenced by personality, mental health and social support. Eur J Public Health 2010;20:647-52.
[PUBMED] |
[Table 1], [Table 2], [Table 3], [Table 4]
| This article has been cited by | | 1 |
Feasibility and preliminary outcomes of intensive mindfulness and yoga on prisoners with personality disorders: A randomised controlled preliminary study |
|
| Ivana Buric, Miguel Farias, Stoyan Kurtev, Valerie van Mulukom, Christopher Mee, Lloyd Gould, Sabeela Rehman, Barbara Parker, Inti A. Brazil | | Brain Behavior and Immunity Integrative. 2023; : 100009 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 2 |
Effect of Surya Namaskara (Sun Salutation) on mental health, self-control and mindfulness of adolescent school children |
|
| Niranjan Parajuli, Mutturaj Shindhe, Balaram Pradhan | | Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 2023; 50: 101691 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 3 |
Effectiveness of yoga on attention of medical students: A prospective study |
|
| Sudha B Sreenivas, Sujan M U, Trishala D, Selvam Ramachandran, Shashidhara, Y.N. | | Biomedicine. 2022; 42(1): 91 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 4 |
Effect of short duration integrated classroom yoga module on physical, cognitive, emotional and personality measures of school children |
|
| Atul Sinha, Sony Kumari | | Yoga Mimamsa. 2021; 53(2): 100 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 5 |
Health Literacy in Schools? A Systematic Review of Health-Related Interventions Aimed at Disadvantaged Adolescents |
|
| Craig Smith,Hannah R. Goss,Johann Issartel,Sarahjane Belton | | Children. 2021; 8(3): 176 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 6 |
Building Resilience and Fortitude Among Victims of School Bullying: Lessons from a Customized Yoga Education Program by Older Adult Volunteers |
|
| Samta P. Pandya | | Contemporary School Psychology. 2020; | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 7 |
The Positive Impact and Associated Mechanisms of Physical Activity on Mental Health in Underprivileged Children and Adolescents: An Integrative Review |
|
| Lauren T. Rose,Andrew Soundy | | Behavioral Sciences. 2020; 10(11): 171 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 8 |
An Evaluation of Yoga and Meditation to Improve Attention, Hyperactivity, and Stress in High-School Students |
|
| Kirti Saxena,Christopher D. Verrico,Johanna Saxena,Sherin Kurian,Stefanie Alexander,Ramandeep Singh Kahlon,Ruchir P. Arvind,Adam Goldberg,Nicholas DeVito,Mirza Baig,Anastasia Grieb,Jafar Bakhshaie,Jafar Simonetti,Eric A. Storch,Laurel Williams,Lex Gillan | | The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 2020; | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 9 |
A Randomized Study on the Effects of Minds in Motion and Yoga on Motor Proficiency and Academic Skills Among Elementary School Children |
|
| Daniela G.L. Terson de Paleville,Jason C. Immekus | | Journal of Physical Activity and Health. 2020; 17(9): 907 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 10 |
Three-dimensional CNN-inspired deep learning architecture for Yoga pose recognition in the real-world environment |
|
| Shrajal Jain,Aditya Rustagi,Sumeet Saurav,Ravi Saini,Sanjay Singh | | Neural Computing and Applications. 2020; | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 11 |
L’EFFET DE LA PRATIQUE DU YOGA EN MILIEU SCOLAIRE SUR LES COMPORTEMENTS D’ATTENTION DES ADOLESCENTS AYANT UN TROUBLE DU SPECTRE DE L’AUTISME |
|
| Marie-Joëlle Beaudoin, Nathalie Poirier1, Ariane Leroux-Boudreault | | Revue québécoise de psychologie. 2020; 40(3): 103 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 12 |
Effect of Moola Bandha (Perineum Contraction), A Yogic Lock on Cognitive Functions of College Students: An Exploratory Study |
|
| Sakshi Sharma,L. Nivethitha,A. Mooventhan | | Journal of Religion and Health. 2019; | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 13 |
Effect of yoga on positive–Negative affect and self-esteem on tribal male adolescents- A randomized control study |
|
| Rema Mohan,Sony Kumari | | Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry. 2018; 34(1): 48 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 14 |
Treating major depression with yoga: A prospective, randomized, controlled pilot trial |
|
| Sudha Prathikanti,Renee Rivera,Ashly Cochran,Jose Gabriel Tungol,Nima Fayazmanesh,Eva Weinmann,Senthil Kumar Subramanian | | PLOS ONE. 2017; 12(3): e0173869 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 15 |
The effects of yoga and self-esteem on menopausal symptoms and quality of life in breast cancer survivors—A secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial |
|
| Anna K. Koch,Sybille Rabsilber,Romy Lauche,Sherko Kümmel,Gustav Dobos,Jost Langhorst,Holger Cramer | | Maturitas. 2017; | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 16 |
Fyzická aktivita a jóga: jejich pusobení na psychiku |
|
| Karel Nešpor | | Cognitive Remediation Journal. 2017; : 16 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 17 |
Physical Activity, Yoga and their Psychological Effects |
|
| Karel Nespor | | Cognitive Remediation Journal. 2017; : 24 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 18 |
A Literature Review on the Connection between Stress and Self-Esteem |
|
| Michael J. Galanakis,Anastasia Palaiologou,Georgia Patsi,Ioanna-Maria Velegraki,Christina Darviri | | Psychology. 2016; 07(05): 687 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 19 |
The Effect of Yoga on Balance and Fear of Falling in Older Adults |
|
| Narjes Nick,Peyman Petramfar,Fariba Ghodsbin,Sareh Keshavarzi,Iran Jahanbin | | PM&R. 2016; 8(2): 145 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 20 |
Yoga Training in Junior Primary School-Aged Children Has an Impact on Physical Self-Perceptions and Problem-Related Behavior |
|
| Stefanie Richter,Maike Tietjens,Susanne Ziereis,Sydney Querfurth,Petra Jansen | | Frontiers in Psychology. 2016; 7 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 21 |
Effects of a Classroom-Based Yoga Intervention on Cortisol and Behavior in Second- and Third-Grade Students |
|
| Bethany Butzer,Danielle Day,Adam Potts,Connor Ryan,Sarah Coulombe,Brandie Davies,Kimberly Weidknecht,Marina Ebert,Lisa Flynn,Sat Bir S. Khalsa | | Journal of Evidence-Based Complementary & Alternative Medicine. 2015; 20(1): 41 | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 22 |
Fostering Self-Regulation Through Curriculum Infusion of Mindful Yoga: A Pilot Study of Efficacy and Feasibility |
|
| Dessa Bergen-Cico,Rachel Razza,Amy Timmins | | Journal of Child and Family Studies. 2015; | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | | | 23 |
Yoga in Public School Improves Adolescent Mood and Affect |
|
| Joshua C. Felver,Bethany Butzer,Katherine J. Olson,Iona M. Smith,Sat Bir S. Khalsa | | Contemporary School Psychology. 2014; | | [Pubmed] | [DOI] | |
|
 |
|
|
|
Search Pubmed for