Often described in controversial terms, Martial Arts (MA) and Combat Sports (CS) are physical activities that may improve physical, psychological and social health outcomes. A systematic literature review was conducted to assess the relationship between MA/CS training and mental health of adult practitioners (≥18 years), searching on CochraneLibrary, EBSCOhost, Web-of-Science, and Scopus databases. Inclusion criteria encompassed research published up to September 2022 that considered the measures of self-related constructs, emotion and well-being, cognition and brain structure/function, in adult MA/CS practitioners. Through an adapted version of the Cochrane Collaboration’s tool, the retrieved seventy cross-sectional and two longitudinal studies were assessed for risk of bias. While links between MA/CS practice and self-related constructs were found negligible, associations with externalizing and internalizing emotion regulation resulted limited. In MA/CS participants, few significant links were revealed for anxiety and disordered eating, whereas some relationships were noted for emotional resources and skills, with some significant trend for high coping task. Inconsistent associations with emotional intelligence emerged. Consistent evidence was revealed for the relationship between MA/CS practice and cognitive outcomes with respect to perceptual and inhibition benefits, but inconsistencies for attention and memory. Conversely, inconclusive evidence for changes of brain structure integrity appeared mostly from studies on boxing. Regarding potential moderators, sex, activity exposure, expertise, type of MA/CS, length of training and level of competitive engagement showed mixed results. Applying rigorous methodologies and novel techniques (e.g., functional imaging), future studies could shed light onto mechanisms of association between MA/CS exposure and outcomes. As a growing research area, MA/CS studies need extensive improvement both in theoretical and practical prospects.
Martial arts, combat sports, and mental health in adults: A systematic literature review
Ciaccioni S;
2023-01-01
Abstract
Often described in controversial terms, Martial Arts (MA) and Combat Sports (CS) are physical activities that may improve physical, psychological and social health outcomes. A systematic literature review was conducted to assess the relationship between MA/CS training and mental health of adult practitioners (≥18 years), searching on CochraneLibrary, EBSCOhost, Web-of-Science, and Scopus databases. Inclusion criteria encompassed research published up to September 2022 that considered the measures of self-related constructs, emotion and well-being, cognition and brain structure/function, in adult MA/CS practitioners. Through an adapted version of the Cochrane Collaboration’s tool, the retrieved seventy cross-sectional and two longitudinal studies were assessed for risk of bias. While links between MA/CS practice and self-related constructs were found negligible, associations with externalizing and internalizing emotion regulation resulted limited. In MA/CS participants, few significant links were revealed for anxiety and disordered eating, whereas some relationships were noted for emotional resources and skills, with some significant trend for high coping task. Inconsistent associations with emotional intelligence emerged. Consistent evidence was revealed for the relationship between MA/CS practice and cognitive outcomes with respect to perceptual and inhibition benefits, but inconsistencies for attention and memory. Conversely, inconclusive evidence for changes of brain structure integrity appeared mostly from studies on boxing. Regarding potential moderators, sex, activity exposure, expertise, type of MA/CS, length of training and level of competitive engagement showed mixed results. Applying rigorous methodologies and novel techniques (e.g., functional imaging), future studies could shed light onto mechanisms of association between MA/CS exposure and outcomes. As a growing research area, MA/CS studies need extensive improvement both in theoretical and practical prospects.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
