The Effectiveness of Karate Techniques Training on Balance and Stereotyped Behaviors of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder that manifests in early childhood. Previous studies have shown that physical activity can be used to improve the behavioral and physical problems of children with autism spectrum disorder, but few studies have been done on the effect of martial arts training on improving balance in autism spectrum disorders. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of karate techniques exercises on balance and stereotypic behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder. The research method was quasi-experimental with pre-test and post-test with control group. For this purpose, 20 autistic children with mean age of 10.90 ± 2.91 years were selected and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group practiced kata techniques training for 10 weeks, 2 sessions of 60 minutes per week. Before and after the 10-week intervention, stereotypical behaviors questionnaire and static and dynamic balance test were completed and administered. Shapiro–Wilks test was used to determine the normality of the data, and covariance analysis was used to compare the mean of the two groups before and after the intervention. The results showed that ten weeks of karate technique training had a significant effect on stereotyped behaviors (p <0.001), but it did not significantly improve static and dynamic balance indices in these children. Due to the similarity of stereotypes in autism and no need cognition, kata techniques exercise can be a valuable intervention added to autism spectrum children's programs to reduce stereotyped behaviors.