The effect of dohsa-hou on body consciousness in disabled sportsmen

In this study, body is considered to be the actual state of a person's existence and is not divided from the mind as the human organism. Body affects the self through body movement, and in this study the author considers that the clients' consciousness and feeling about their bodies has an effect upon their postural appearance and body movement. By applying dohsa training - a Japanese psycho-rehabilitation method - to disabled sportsmen with problems regarding standing balance,standing firm on the ground (fumishime in Japanese), unbalanced walking, and poor coordination of hands and legs during walking and running, their change of body consciousness, change of body posture and movement, and possible change of sports performance are investigated. As a result of training, the public aspect of their body consciousness changed the most by experiencing a new mode of motor action which was different from the one hey experienced before the training; they gained a better balance of their body while walking and running, and they improved their sports record time. The results indicated that this training is-a useful method for helping disabled sportsmen to improve their body consciousness, to gain control over bath their own bodies and minds, and that it may be useful in devising training programs for them.