This dissertation explores Wittgenstein’s views on the mind-body problem. It is possible to provide an examination of Wittgenstein’s approach by tracing the evolution of the theory of mind and the mind-body problem, by considering the current ways of dealing with the mind-body problem, and Wittgenstein’s critique of the notion of the mind. Wittgenstein’s views on the nature of philosophy and the relationship between philosophy and psychology make it possible to understand and as this dissertation argues – see beyond – the conceptual confusion that has since arisen out of philosophic tradition that perpetuates a ‘myth of the mind’. Schools of thought such as the Cartesians and cognitivists have attempted, through the construction of various elaborate theories, to solve the ‘riddle’ of the mind and to address the so-called ‘mind-body problem’. Cognitive science, in particular, has used the tradition and the myth of the mind as a basis for its research. Wittgenstein shows that such thinking is particularly muddled. By examining Wittgenstein’s approach to the mind-body problem, it is argued here that theories based on the tradition of the ‘myth of the mind’ are inherently flawed. Wittgenstein uses his methods, consisting of his notions of ‘grammar’, ‘language games’ and the re-arrangement of concepts, to extrapolate meaning and to see through the conceptual confusions that the use of language causes and that give rise to the mind-body problem . / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

M. Comm. / The assessment and measurement of positive psychology have been largely survey driven, given the way in which this domain’s focus areas have been operationalised. The disadvantage of using surveys in the measurement of positive psychology is that measurement is to an extent ‘disembodied’ in this approach, meaning that positive psychology is reduced to a mental activity – something which implies the negation of the physical. The purpose of the study was therefore to explore to what extent an alternative instrument, the Positivity Projective Technique (PPT), based on embodiment theory, serves as a valid projective technique for eliciting positivity. Data were collected by means of a sentence completion technique (SCT) whereafter it was quantitatively (to a limited extent) and qualitatively analysed by means of a content analysis. The results were similar to, but greater in number than, the variables proposed by formal theories/models of positivity. Given the results, the PPT seems to be a valid projective technique of positivity and may be applied for positive developmental purposes within individual, organisational and consumer contexts.

Embodied emotion theory hypothesises a reciprocal relationship between physical expression of emotion and the manner in which emotional information is perceived. The Integrated Cognitive Subsystems (ICS) theory of depression and Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) propose the body as key in the development and treatment of depression. This study investigated the relationship between posture and outcomes of mindfulness practice; participants meditating in an upright posture were predicted to report greater mindfulness, positive affect and distress tolerance than in a slouched posture. A non-clinical, adult sample (N=39) carried out a 15-minute mindfulness breathing exercise in upright and slouched postures in a counter-balanced within-participant design, with outcome measures of mindfulness, affect and distress tolerance. Participants also reported qualitative experiences. Due to order effects, only data from the first posture participants adopted were analysed, converting the study into a between-participant design. Hypotheses were not supported; between-subjects analyses found no difference in participants’ reported mindfulness, affect or distress tolerance between the two posture groups; potentially due to measurement or power issues. Keeping with previous MBI research, negative affect decreased following the practice in both postures. There was tentative evidence that distress tolerance decreased in the slouched posture condition; although there was no change in the upright condition. Qualitatively, participants reported breathing was easier when upright. These two findings may provide some support for the importance of attending to an upright posture in mindfulness practice. Further research is required to understand the role of the body in depression and MBIs.

D.Cur. / Movement is an integral aspect of daily living. Movement allows the human being to express, find meaning and reflect a part or the whole of the unfolding of the stories of their lives. In nursing movement is the dialogue and interaction between professional nurse and patient. The essence of the dialogue is the movement towards caring and healing between the professional nurse and the individual. The purpose of this research is to develop, describe, evaluate and provide guidelines for the operationalisation of a model as a framework of reference for nursing to facilitate the individual faced with mental health challenges as an integral part of wholeness. The research objectives are: •To elicit the experience of belly dancers within the belly dancing environment. •To elicit the experience of belly dance teachers within the belly dancing environment. •To describe a model to facilitate mental health as an integral part of wholeness of the individuals faced with mental health challenges. •To evaluate the model to promote the facilitation of mental health as integral part of wholeness of the individuals faced with mental health challenges. •To describe the guidelines for operationalising the model for facilitation of mental health as an integral part of wholeness. A research design consisted of theory-generative, qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual in nature. The purposive sample consisted of eight individuals participating in belly dancing.

The present study was designed to determine if Progressive Relaxation exercises would be effective in reducing the response time of a single Parkinsonian on a specific reaction time/movement time took. A 75 year old man served as the subject for this study. He performed a simple response time task at two scheduled sessions per week, for a total of ten weeks. Starting the sixth week, the subject began relaxation training at each session. Data points that represented the average of ten response scores from each session were plotted on a graph and examined by regression analysis. Regression lines representing data points projected to 100 sessions were calculated for both treatment and non-treatment halves. The response time for the one hundredth session, without treatment, was calculated to be .5744 second. The response time for the one hundredth treatment session was .1628 second. Regression analysis indicated that the progressive relaxation program reduced the response time of the subject.

What is the ideal human upright posture? Where did it come from, how did it develop, what is its significance, how is it measured? What are the cause and effect of malposture? Much has been published on the role of posture in physical as well as mental and emotional states of the individual. This study was undertaken to investigate these issues, while at the same time aiming to find the position and role of posture in the physical and psychological context of human life. The first aspect of posture investigated was its definition. What constitutes good posture is still a debated issue. The conclusion drawn was that good posture represents the state of balance in an individual at rest and during motion. Ideally this state should be achieved with all the body parts aligned on top of each other requiring minimal effort and energy expenditure. The evolutionary origin of the upright posture in man was traced in order to come to a clearer understanding of the anatomical, biomechanical and physiological mechanisms involved in posture. The positions and functions of some muscles and bones have remained, and some have changed during the development of the upright human from its quadrupedal ancestors. Maintenance of balanced posture depends mainly on the coordinated action of the stabilizing mono-articulated muscles, and their place and purpose in upright man were viewed in the light of their origins. By so doing one is able to uncover their intended use and to identify misuse of these muscles. Development throughout childhood mimics the evolutionary process. A series of postural exercises was described, which follows the childhood/evolutionary pattern, and have proven to be successful in postural rehabilitation and body¬mind integration. In order to understand the concept of the upright standing posture, control mechanisms responsible for maintaining upright posture were reviewed. These included the sensory and the neuromusculo-skeletal systems. This was duly undertaken in accordance with existing literature, it was concluded that posture is controlled in association with all human functions. Following the concept that posture affects the mind and emotions, the work and theories of prominent researchers in the body-mind and postural integration field such as Frederick Alexander, Raymond Dart, Moshe Feldenkrais, Alexander Lowen, Wilhelm Reich and Ida Rolf were reviewed and distilled. This led to evidence that treatment of the body has an effect on the mind, that structure influences function and that postural equilibrium has a beneficial influence on both mind and body. According to numerous workers malposture in man is pandemic. Ensuing literature and empirical research on total body posture, and the position of each area of the body, from the head to the feet, revealed divergent causes of this problem as well as effects of malposture, including negative self-image, psycholological problems, pain, fatigue and the inability to achieve the full human potential. Although there is no obvious cause of postural imbalance, there are many ways of preventing or rectifying the disorder. During the course of a postural rehabilitation therapy, there is a good chance of uncovering the underlying cause of the postural imbalance. This can be as deep seated as a personality disorder or as clear as the fear of an old sport injury. The incidence and extent of postural defects were investigated in two small groups of subjects with the aim to determine the range of postural deviations, and the body areas most commonly affected. All subjects studied, leaned forward with the gravity line anterior to the ankle joint. Postural defects were prevalent in all subjects. Most of the subjects were categorized as having severe postural defects or gross deformity. Postural asymmetry and kyphosis were the most common defects. The conclusions drawn from these studies were that most people, in any age group, suffer from some type of postural defect, supporting the general consensus that malposture is a pandemic condition. The effects of postural rehabilitation were also investigated. Postures improved in all the subjects over a period of twelve weeks, with a more vertical body alignment the most obvious change. Postural rehabilitation has physical and psychological consequences. This was demonstrated by improvement in posture and increased body awareness, a decrease in the tendency to become fatigued, an decrease in back and neck stiffness and improvement in mental attitudes. Postural training in general could therefore be profitable for both body and mind, and an appreciation of good posture and its resulting efficiency represents the best kind of preventative medicine. Postural training should have a place in both Education and Health. / Thesis (D Phil (HMS))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Arts, Languages and Human Movement Studies Education / Unrestricted

A thesis submitted in partial fullfillment of the requirements for the degree, Doctor of Philosophy in community psychology at the University of Zululand, 2005. / Behaviour problems in class rooms are an old story that has and will continue to bother teachers for many years. In some cases children and adolescents with severe behaviour disorders are admitted in schools of industry. Schools of industry offer different support programmes but none of these look at physical exercise as a strategy to enhance psychological well being. This research was aimed at exploring the impact of physical exercise on the psychological well being of adolescents with behaviour disorders. Sixty adolescents from two schools of industry were randomly assigned into experimental and control groups. Both groups were pre and post tested on behaviour, feelings about the self, physical self perception and wellness scales. A physical exercise programme was administered to an experimental group. Quantitative results reveal that adolescents who were exposed to the physical exercise programme showed general improvements in behaviour, feelings about the self, physical self-perception and wellness. Qualitative results indicated a decrease in smoking habits, absenteeism, aggression and cases of absconding. In the light of the above findings it can be deduced that physical exercise brought about enhanced self-esteem, self confidence, healthy interactions and social harmony among the adolescents. These attributes contribute positively to the psychological well being of an individual. This research does provide for the relative influence of physical exercise on the psychological well being of adolescents with behaviour disorders.

Thesis advisor: John . Makransky / “The body” has become a major focus of intellectual inquiry across academic disciplines over the last fifty years. The interest in the body has also intensified with recent advances in studies of materiality, affect, technology, and neuro and cognitive sciences. In Christian theology, works on the body have also grown rapidly. My aim in this essay is to make a contribution to contemporary Christian theological discussions on the nature and role of the human body by turning to Edith Stein’s writings on contemplation and engaging a comparative theological study of a particular Tibetan Buddhist meditation tradition called lojong (Tib. blo sbyong). The core issue that I address is the lack of practical traction between theologies of the body and a person’s actual relationship with her body in a life of Christian formation. Christian theology has not provided an adequate model of the body that can concretely inform Christian experience of the body and guide Christian practice. I argue that Stein’s extensive work on the body in both philosophical phenomenology and ascetico-contemplative theology can make a particularly important contribution to addressing this issue. However, Stein’s theory of the body has limitations that point to deeper issues in the ontology and anthropology she inherits from the Western Christian tradition. I argue for a comparative theological study of non-Christian sources that conceive the body in ways that shed new light on her view of the body. The current theological literature shows three broad approaches to constructing a theology of the body: re-appropriating neglected sources within the Christian tradition; appropriating concepts and methods from academic disciplines outside Christian theology; or a combination of the two. Yet, these approaches fall short of elucidating how theoretical work on the body should concretely affect bodily experience and practice. In addition to these approaches, there is a need to study theological sources that employ models where the body is better integrated into the anthropology and contemplative framework. I turn to Tibetan Buddhist lojong to reflect on how the points of convergence and divergence between lojong and Stein can help us develop a model of the body that addresses the lacunae in Christian theology of the body. I examine the underlying ‘subtle body’ model operative in lojong texts and argue for explicitly using a subtle body model in Christian contemplation. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2019. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Theology.

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In this project, I advocate for what I call “embodied imagination” and an entangled multiplicity in lieu of binary oppositions through embodiment. This is not merely about the body; embodiment includes the mind, spirit, and other factors such as intersubjectivity, spatiotemporality, difference, and repetition—all in co-dependent and co-emergent relation. The history of Cartesian dualism and Western metaphysics looms large, and my argument stems from an alternative reading of what is possible for human life through acknowledgment of the multifaceted role of embodiment. To make sense of claims that can seem rather abstract, I ground my arguments and sources in examples and connections within the martial art of karate. More specifically, I most often reference kata, which are series of techniques taught in sequences from teacher to student and performed against imaginary opponents. The practice and performance of embodiment manifest through movement practices like martial arts; practitioners imagine virtual possibilities and execute actual decisions in creative modes. In creating and performing a kata that aligns with the themes of each chapter, I highlight this process of experimentation and exploration as a way to interrogate binary sets such as the mind/body and the real/virtual. In so doing, this project raises prescient questions about human being—what it means to be human, and, through embodied imagination, what we have the potential to become.