Introduction: Yoga is an ancient practice, its mental aspects are related to maintain cognitive control, particularly in the areas of attention, memory and arousal. The relationship between yoga and the development of specific cognitive functions has been investigated: Anantharaman and Kabir (1984) stated that the span of memory and attention, measured before and after a training of yoga change positively as a result of training. Methods: The sample consisted of 24 university students with no previous experience in yoga. The experimental group (n = 12), after the assessment, took a yoga course and then partecipated in the post-test phase. The control group (n = 12) took part only to the pre- and post-test phases. Results: Regarding the attentive measures, all the tests showed a trend of improvement in the experimental group, except for the results to the Stroop Test that showed a significant decrease of the average reaction times. Regarding the measures of short-term spatial memory, the Running Memory Task showed a significant increase in correct answers and a decrease in the number of mistakes in the experimental group. The remaining spatial tests showed trends of improvement. Concerning the short-term verbal memory, in the experimental group there were significant improvements in the Digit Span, in a task of working memory and in the serial repetition of words. Discussion/Conclusions: The results of this study confirmed the experimental hypothesis that establishes a link between yoga practice and improvement of attentive and memory performance.

Improvement of cognitive processes through yoga practice

FABIO, Rosa Angela
2013-01-01

Abstract

Introduction: Yoga is an ancient practice, its mental aspects are related to maintain cognitive control, particularly in the areas of attention, memory and arousal. The relationship between yoga and the development of specific cognitive functions has been investigated: Anantharaman and Kabir (1984) stated that the span of memory and attention, measured before and after a training of yoga change positively as a result of training. Methods: The sample consisted of 24 university students with no previous experience in yoga. The experimental group (n = 12), after the assessment, took a yoga course and then partecipated in the post-test phase. The control group (n = 12) took part only to the pre- and post-test phases. Results: Regarding the attentive measures, all the tests showed a trend of improvement in the experimental group, except for the results to the Stroop Test that showed a significant decrease of the average reaction times. Regarding the measures of short-term spatial memory, the Running Memory Task showed a significant increase in correct answers and a decrease in the number of mistakes in the experimental group. The remaining spatial tests showed trends of improvement. Concerning the short-term verbal memory, in the experimental group there were significant improvements in the Digit Span, in a task of working memory and in the serial repetition of words. Discussion/Conclusions: The results of this study confirmed the experimental hypothesis that establishes a link between yoga practice and improvement of attentive and memory performance.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11570/2654416
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