Morals, Mental Health And Martial Arts? ? Back Towards The Locus

When I wrote a piece on whether mixed martial arts could be a harmless and, indeed, worthwhile hobby for a kid I hadn?t thought that philosophers might have reflected on the question. They have, of course. The mad bastards consider everything. Dr Damon Young, co-author of Martial Arts and Philosophy, touches on it in his interesting essay on the role of combat practices in reducing aggression?

Research on children and adults shows that the so-called ?traditional? fighting crafts, such as judo and karate, leave students less aggressive.

It?s not simply that pacifists choose Asian courtesy over swinging fists ? this isn?t just selection bias. The longer students train, the more pro-social they become. Other studies have demonstrated links between martial arts and increased confidence and school grades, alongside the more obvious improvements in health and fitness.

The substantive research that links fighting crafts to reduced aggression (that of Nosanchuk and MacNiel, for example) emphasises that this is thought to be true of traditional forms of combat. If I had a kid who took an interest in combat sports I?d be inclined towards them towards jiu-jitsu or karate. If they fancied entering the Octagon when they were older they?d be well-placed to: whether it?s Silva?s Muay Thai; Fedor?s Sambo or St. Pierre?s Kyokushin karate, all the greats have built on something they?ve specialised in. I suspect, moreover, their age-old ethics of respect and self-control are more liable to make for safer, healthier conditions for the immature.

Given the rise of the UFC, however, it?s nigh-on inevitable that mixed martial arts training will be attractive to kids and teens in years to come. It?s worth studying traditional methods to see if their valuable features can be adopted. A guy named Brad Binder studied the literature relating to martial arts and psychology and offered some insights as to what these might be?

One possibility is that the sensei or coach acts as a role-model and ?leads by example?. Regets (1990) reported a positive correlation between an instructor?s aggressiveness and his/her student?s aggressiveness. Conversely, a negative correlation between an instructor?s traditional characteristics and his/her student?s aggressiveness was observed.

Binder stresses that the more reflective, even cerebral aspects of fighting crafts seem to be valuable. He reports on a study of juvenile delinquents?

The first group received traditional tae kwon do training (involving meditation, warm-up exercises, brief lecture about tae kwon do, and the physical techniques of tae kwon do); the second group received modern tae kwon do training (only the physical techniques were taught)?[Both] groups were taught by the same instructor for the same amount of time and in the same room. At the end of six months, the students in the traditional tae kwon do group showed a decrease in aggressiveness and anxiety and an increase in self-esteem. In contrast, the modern tae kwon do group showed an increased tendency towards delinquency and an increase in aggressiveness.

If there is to be a valuable form of ?kids MMA?, then, there doesn?t just have to be a coherent scheme of physical training but, it seems, some form of moral instruction and conditions promotive of healthy thinking. This sounds wanky but, then, if the alternative is angry, amped-up kids being taught triangle chokes that might be worth enduring.

As for the traditional forms of martial arts that seem to be of especial value ? perhaps it could be worth promoting them more widely among the nation?s youth. They?ve got to be better at encouraging decent behaviour than, say, football.

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Source: http://bensix.wordpress.com/2012/07/10/morals-mental-health-and-martial-arts/

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