In a study involved over 1,300 primary school children in Hong Kong, about 10% were reported to have major depressive disorders ( 4). On the other hand, the prevalence rate of depression in the preschool period was still understudied, as it could vary from 0 to 2.1% ( 3). Anxiety disorders were also well-recognized to have the highest prevalence rate among different types of psychiatric illness during the preschool period ( 3). According to a recent review article ( 3), the prevalence rate for preschool anxiety disorders was around 10–20%. In western countries, up to 14% of preschool-age children were found to have clinical levels of depression and anxiety ( 1, 2). Future studies are warranted to further confirm our findings with a larger sample.ĭepression and anxiety are common mental health problems that significantly affect children in the modern society. Results from PAS-TC showed significant improvement in anxiety levels after the intervention in the intervention group ( p = 0.048, ϕ = 0.344, p = 0.037).Ĭonclusions: Our findings suggest a plausible anti-anxiety effect of educational kinesiology in kindergarteners with special needs by elevating the oxytocin levels. Results: After controlled for the effect at baseline, gender and types of special needs, the changes in oxytocin levels were significantly higher in the intervention group compared with control, whereas no significant between-group difference in changes of cortisol levels was observed. Because of the small samples, non-parametric tests such as Mann-Whitney U test, Quade test, and Fisher's exact tests were used in this study where appropriate. Scores of Parent-rated Preschool Anxiety Scale (PAS-TC) were also collected at pre- and post-intervention. Saliva samples were collected at baseline and after the completion of intervention programme for the measurement of cortisol and oxytocin levels. Thirty-seven kindergarteners (3.5–6.5 years old) who were either diagnosed with one type of special needs or referred by school principals due to the requirement of special supports at school were assigned to either the intervention group, which received 1-h educational kinesiology intervention weekly for a total of 10 weeks, or the wait-list control group. Methods: A quasi-experimental design was adopted in this study. This study explores the effect of educational kinesiology on the changes in salivary cortisol and oxytocin levels in kindergarteners with special needs. Cortisol and oxytocin levels in saliva have been reported to be reliable stress and anxiety markers that provide unbiased objective data. Previous studies that evaluated the effectiveness of educational kinesiology relied mainly on subjective measures, in which subjective bias is inevitable. Given the popularity of educational kinesiology in school settings, it is important to revisit its effectiveness through scientific research. Yet, it lacks supporting scientific evidence and is regarded as pseudoscience. Background: Educational kinesiology is a popular intervention that aims to improve brain functioning via physical movements.
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