Effect of thoppukaranam on attention, memory concentraion-concentration, mindfulness and state exam anxiety in school going children

Abstract

Background: Research on the effect of Thoppukaranam is limited despite it being practiced as a form of worship to Lord Gaṇapati – the elephant-headed Hindu deity of success - and as a punishment in schools. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of Thoppukaranam and Squats on Attention and , state anxiety and state mindfulness. Methods: A randomized self-as-control within subjects design was employed. Eighty participants (40 Girls and 40 Boys) (age = 10 to 15 ±2) completed three testing sessions including baseline, control (Squats) and experimental (Thoppukaranam) sessions. The DLST Test, State Anxiety,Memory-Concentration-(Vascular Digits) and State Mindful Attention Awareness Scale were used to measure cognitive performance and psychological states. Results: Results show that overall while the practice of Squats improved Attention and as well as state mindfulness and decreased state anxiety, the improvement was more significant following the practice of Thoppukaranam. Conclusion: These findings indicate that the effect of Thoppukaranam is to improve cognitive functioning and psychological states.