By:

Dr. Richard C. Bell, United States Sports Academy

Chia-Ming Chang, Tajen Institute of Technology, Taiwan, Republic of China

Abstract

In this paper, the authors analyze the effects of Taekwondo training on personality. The authors found that Taekwondo participants realize, that in addition to the physical training, Taekwondo emphasizes concentration, self-control and self-discipline. Other researchers suggest that Taekwondo training has many psychological benefits, such as enhanced self-esteem, self-concept, reduced aggressiveness, decreased anxiety, increase in personal independence, and ability to take a leadership role. Taekwondo training might be used as a therapeutic program.

Introduction

Although the relationship between certain aspects of self-concept and performance in activities such as aerobic dance, soccer, volleyball, and handball has been reported (Plummer & Koh, 1987; Harter, 1978; Olszewskal, 1982; Scanlan & Passer, 1979), little evidence exists regarding the psychological value of the martial arts. Miller (1989) states that self-concept may be enhanced through the acquisition or mastery of a new skill. Novices are most likely to gain self-concept through participation in physical activities. Finkenberg (1990) studied the effect of participation in Taekwondo on college women's self-concept and found significant differences on total self-concept and on subscale scores in physical, personal, social identity, and satisfaction. Therefore, the authors believe that the Taekwondo training is of great psychological value to participants.

The Background of Taekwondo

Taekwondo has been under constant evolution for over several thousand years. However, it was not until the 1950s that Taekwondo was standardized and organized by Gen Choi Hong Hi and the sport was brought outside the Korean borders, at first to Vietnam and the US, and later to the rest of the world. Today, Taekwondo is organized in three international federations: the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF), with headquarters in Seoul, Korea; the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF), with headquarters in Austria; and the Global Taekwondo Federation (GTF) with headquarters in Korea. Taekwondo has recently been declared an official Olympic sport with the first competitions held during the Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, in 2000 (Lucas, 1992).

According to Skelton (1991), one may benefit from the study of Taekwondo regardless of age, size, or athletic ability. Taekwondo training can increase strength and muscle tone, reduce body fat, improve cardiovascular conditioning and endurance, improve balance and coordination, reduce stress, improve concentration and focus, improve performance in one's job, school, or sports, provide a structured program of advancement with achievable goals, and improve self discipline and self confidence.

Effects of Taekwondo Training on Personality

Finkenberg (1990) studied the effects of participation in Taekwondo on college women's self-concept. The experimental group contained 51 women enrolled in Taekwondo classes, and the control group contained 49 women enrolled in 4 sections of general health courses. Pretests and posttests were administered in the first week of a semester and the last week of the semester. The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale (Roid and Fitts, 1989) measuring self-concept was used as the instrument in this study. The questionnaire was used to assess perceptions of physical self, moral-ethical self, personal self, family self, social self, identity, self-satisfaction, and behavior. Roid and Fitts (1989) support the test's reliability and validity. An analysis of Covariance was used to control statistically for initial differences in self-concept among subjects with the pretest scores as the covariant. The results indicated that significant differences were found on total self-concept and on sub-scale scores in physical, personal, social, identity, and satisfaction. Insignificant differences were found on moral-ethical, family, behavior and self-criticism scales. The authors concluded that the total self-concept and certain sub-scales were influenced by participation in an 8-weeks course in Taekwondo. This study supports the findings of Duthie, et al. (1978) who showed that students of martial arts were more self-confident than those without training. It also supports the conclusion that "it could be assumed that one or two months of karate training is sufficient to improve the typical student's level of general self-esteem" (Richman & Rehberg, 1986).

 In a study addressing aggressive behavior as a function of Taekwondo ranking, Skelton, et al. (1991) investigated the relationship between aggressive behavior and advancement through the belt ranks among children in the American Taekwondo Association (ATA). The sample consisted of 68 children, from the ages 6 to 11 years old, who were enrolled in 10 ATA schools located in Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Illinois. The parents of the students answered the survey form. One-way Analysis of Variance indicated a significant inverse relationship between the children's belt rank and their aggression. A trend analysis was performed to help clarify the nature of the relationship between the two variables (belt rank and aggressive score). Results suggested that there was a significant trend towards reduced aggression with advanced ATA group rank. The authors suggested that further research should include longitudinal reassessments of aggression of the children beginning at the lower ranks and continuing as they progress through the higher Taekwondo ranks to confirm the conclusion.

 Kurian et al. (1994) studied the relationship between personality factors and ATA Taekwondo training in a sample of younger students. The subjects were 72 boys attending two ATA schools in the southwestern United States. Subjects completed the 1973 Form A of the Children's Personality Questionnaire following a regular training session. The questionnaire contains 14 bipolar primary factors. Correlation analysis for the test factors with age, training time, and belt rank of the sample was conducted. Factor A (reserved versus outgoing) correlated significantly with age. Training time was significantly related to Factor N (naive versus socially perceptive), suggesting that longer times in Taekwondo training are associated with more socially perceptive behavior. Belt rank was significantly correlated with Factors D (+), F (+), I (-), and N (+). These correlations indicate that attainment of higher belt rank is associated with scores indicating more demanding, enthusiastic and optimistic, self-reliant, and socially perceptive personality traits. The author concluded, " These results suggest that ATA belt rank is associated with a pattern of enthusiastic optimism and self-reliance. This personality pattern is socially positive and suggests that Taekwondo training may be beneficial for younger male students".

 In a study on personality characteristics and duration of ATA Taekwondo training, Kurian et al. (1993) compared personality characteristics of two groups having participated in Taekwondo for different lengths of time. The subjects were 30 adults attending two American Taekwondo Association schools in the southwestern United States. They averaged 2.6 years of Taekwondo training (range of 17 to 44 years old). Form C of the 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire (Cattell, 1980) containing 105 items distributed across 16 bipolar primary factor scales was used as the instrument. The groups with shorter time (less than 1.4 years) and longer time (more than 1.5 years) in Taekwondo training were compared using a t-Test for the mean scores of Anxiety, Independence and Leadership. The results indicated that the length of Taekwondo participation was associated with lower scores on Anxiety and with higher scores on Independence. The authors suggested that lower scores on Anxiety and higher scores on Independence often accompany improved mental health, suggesting that participation in Taekwondo training may be useful as part of therapeutic programs.

Summary

This study was expected to contribute to an understanding of the psychological value of Taekwondo. The study was also expected to provide more insight into the beneficial effects of Taekwondo training for both physical educators and Taekwondo trainees. Research suggests that Taekwondo training may have many psychological benefits, such as enhanced self-esteem, self-concept (Columbus & Rice, 1991, cited from Kurian et al., 1993 ; Finkenberg, 1990), and reducing aggressiveness (Skelton, 1991). In the study of Kurian et al. (1993), it was indicated that Taekwondo training could decrease scores on anxiety and increase scores on personal independence and ability to take a leadership role. Furthermore, Kurian et al. (1993) concluded that participation of Taekwondo training might be used as a therapeutic program. Finkenberg (1990) found that Taekwondo training was helpful for college women to build self-concept.

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