Telles Shirley, Sharma Sachin Kumar, Singh Nilkamal, Balkrishna Acharya
Patanjali Research Foundation, Haridwar, India.
Front Public Health. 2017 Jul 27;5:184. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2017.00184. eCollection 2017.
The characteristics of yoga practitioners and factors motivating people to practice yoga have been studied in the US and in Australia. This study aimed to determine the characteristics of yoga users in India, the factors that motivate them to practice yoga, and the yoga techniques of choice.
The study was a one-time, cross-sectional survey based on convenience sampling. Inclusion criteria were (a) a minimum of 1 week experience of yoga and (b) at least 10 years of age. 14,250 people received the survey. After excluding those who did not meet the inclusion criteria or filled in the survey incompletely or incorrectly, 5,157 respondents were included in the study.
Out of 5,157 respondents, there were more males (67.3%), aged between 21 and 44 years (33.7% of the sample surveyed), educated up to high school (62.5%), students (39.3%), and those who had between 1 and 12 months of experience in yoga (54.4%). The first most common reason to practice yoga for all respondents was physical fitness. Three of the remaining reasons to practice yoga differed significantly with age: (i) yoga for disease management (χ = 17.62, < 0.005), (ii) yoga as a hobby (χ = 10.87, < 0.05), and (iii) yoga based on the (teacher's) instructions (χ = 20.05, < 0.001). The yoga technique of choice [i.e., (i) (χ = 23.17, < 0.001), (ii) (χ = 19.87, < 0.001), or (iii) meditation (χ = 9.64, < 0.05)] differed significantly across age groups.
In India, a yoga practitioner was more likely to be male, between 21 and 44 years of age, high school educated, and a student. The reasons to practice yoga and the yoga technique of choice differed significantly with age.
美国和澳大利亚已对瑜伽练习者的特征以及促使人们练习瑜伽的因素进行了研究。本研究旨在确定印度瑜伽使用者的特征、促使他们练习瑜伽的因素以及他们所选择的瑜伽技巧。
本研究是一项基于便利抽样的一次性横断面调查。纳入标准为：（a）至少有1周的瑜伽练习经验；（b）年龄至少10岁。14250人收到了调查问卷。在排除那些不符合纳入标准或未完整或正确填写调查问卷的人后，5157名受访者被纳入研究。
在5157名受访者中，男性较多（67.3%），年龄在21至44岁之间（占所调查样本的33.7%），受教育程度为高中（62.5%），学生（39.3%），以及有1至12个月瑜伽练习经验的人（54.4%）。所有受访者练习瑜伽的最常见首要原因是身体健康。其余三个练习瑜伽的原因在不同年龄组中有显著差异：（i）为疾病管理而练习瑜伽（χ = 17.62，P < 0.005），（ii）将瑜伽作为一种爱好（χ = 10.87，P < 0.05），以及（iii）根据（老师的）指导练习瑜伽（χ = 20.05，P < 0.001）。所选择的瑜伽技巧[即，（i）哈他瑜伽（χ = 23.17，P < 0.001），（ii）阿斯汤加瑜伽（χ = 19.87，P < 0.001），或（iii）冥想（χ = 9.64，P < 0.05）]在不同年龄组之间有显著差异。
在印度，瑜伽练习者更可能是男性，年龄在21至44岁之间，受过高中教育，且是学生。练习瑜伽的原因和所选择的瑜伽技巧在不同年龄组中有显著差异。
