Contributions Of A Karate‑do Programme To Social Skills And Emotional Self‑regulation In Students With Socio‑behavioural Difficulties. A Pilot Exploratory Study
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Abstract
Students with socio-behavioural difficulties frequently exhibit deficits in social skills that impair interpersonal relationships and school adjustment. Although martial arts have been proposed as educational strategies to promote socio-emotional development, evidence regarding short-term interventions and interindividual variability in outcomes remains limited. This exploratory pilot study examined group- and individual-level changes in social skills and emotional self-regulation among students with socio-behavioural difficulties following participation in an extracurricular Karate-Do program. Eight students aged 12 to 15, enrolled in grades 6 through 9, participated in a 10-week intervention consisting of two weekly 60-minute sessions. Social skills were assessed before and after the intervention using the Social Skills Inventory for Adolescents (SSIA), considering indicators of frequency of occurrence and difficulty. Participants’ perceptions of socio-emotional development were also collected through a self-report questionnaire. No statistically significant differences were observed in social skills frequency of occurrence between the pre- and post-intervention phases (p = 0.095); however, an average increase of 9.38 points was identified, with a moderate-to-large effect size (η²p = 0.35; d ≈ 0.68). No significant changes were found in social skills difficulties (p = 0.77; η²p = 0.013). Individual analyses revealed improvements primarily in affective approach, assertiveness, and self-control, although changes in difficulties were heterogeneous. Most participants reported positive perceptions related to respect, emotional self-regulation, concentration, and socialization. In conclusion, this exploratory pilot study suggests that a Karate‑Do program may contribute to the development of social skills and emotional self‑regulation in students with socio‑behavioural difficulties in educational contexts.
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