Article
The purpose of the research: to determine the effectiveness of implementing body-oriented practices in physical education classes for university students from a special medical group (SMG) in reducing situational anxiety.
Methods and study design. The experiment was conducted from February 10 to June 1, 2025. Participants included 106 first- to third-year SMG students (Group "A": 90 female, 16 male) with a mean age of 19.5±1.2 years.
Situational anxiety was assessed before and after the intervention using the Integrative Anxiety Test (IAT) by A.P. Bizyuk, L.I. Wasserman, and B.V. Iovlev (1997) [1].
Data are presented as mean (x̄) and standard deviation (±σ). The statistical significance of differences was verified using Student's t-test.
Research results and their discussion. During the experimental period, a specialized program based on the methods of W. Reich, A. Lowen, M. Feldenkrais, and others was integrated into the "Physical education" and "Elective courses in physical education" classes for SMG Group "A." The program included modules such as "Breathing and movement: relieving tension" and "Grounding and stability: managing anxiety."
A total of 16 sessions were conducted:
Module 1 (4 sessions): Focused on social adaptation, relieving initial tension, and developing basic bodily awareness skills.
Module 2 (8 sessions): Dedicated to teaching breathing techniques and movement exercises aimed at releasing muscular tension ("clamps").
Module 3 (4 sessions): Aimed at developing psychophysical resilience in stressful situations and reducing background anxiety.
Conclusion. The integration of body-oriented practices into the physical education curriculum and extracurricular independent activities for SMG students resulted in statistically significant (p≤0.05-0.01) positive outcomes. The overall level of situational anxiety decreased from 4.18±0.62 to 1.55±0.28 points. The most pronounced reduction was observed on the scales measuring the phobic component and social defense reactions.
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