The Benefits of Yoga for Health and Nutrition of Young People - Research Proposal Example

Running Head: The Benefits of Yoga The Benefits of Yoga for Young People's Health and Nutrition I. INTRODUCTION Although yoga has existed for hundreds of years, its popularity gained larger domain in this last few decades. This is largely due to the growing trend of healthy living especially in urban places and to the undeniable benefits that yoga advocates get when practicing this. Recently, there is a growing market for those who seek alternative remedy or aid to sicknesses that medical treatment cannot provide. Yoga therapy is one of those emerging alternative treatments or supplementary treatments with medical treatment. This paper then will attempt to review some studies on the benefit of yoga as a form of exercise and therapy. According to Life Positive (2000), "The most important benefit of yoga is physical and mental therapy". Following the practices of yogasanas, pranayama and meditation, one will be able to get the maximum benefit of yoga. As to any exercise, yoga also has the capability of slowing down the natural process of aging. Yoga has the goal of achieving health and wellness at all levels of a person; physical, mental and spiritual. One is able to maintain a flexible and well circulated body system, therefore enforcing the body in a cleaner state and minimizing cell deterioration. Life Positive (2000) further stresses that yoga creates a balance in the nervous and endocrine systems that directly affect all the other systems and organs in the body. The methods used in this study are interviews, research and analysis of data for surveys or statistics that can be retrieved form websites. II. POSITIVISM APPROACH AND PHENOMENOLOGY APPROACH Positivism first developed its distinctive features in the works of Auguste Comte. It has evolved to be known by a variety of titles all of which express a fixed set of beliefs e.g. empiriocriticism; logical positivism; logical empiricism; analytical and linguistic philosophy. The basic tenets of positivism include: The belief that all knowledge regarding matters of fact are based upon "positive" data, observation an experience. Key words in positivist thought include - data; observability; validation; evaluation; testing; falsification; repudiation; replication. a. The belief that the growth of knowledge proceeds through the elimination of incorrect ideas. b. The belief that incorrect ideas can be defined as those which are either logically inconsistent or, most importantly, can be shown to have empirically refutable consequences. c. That to be called a scientific fact it must be conceivable that evidence can be cited which would refute that fact. d. The "facts" do exist apart from the personality of the observer. It followed form the above that positivist researcher prefer precise quantitative data; prefer to carry out controlled experiments or to conduct statistical tests, prefer objective, rigorous and exact measurements; and prefer to test ideas using research techniques using numbers. The phenomenological tradition is diagrammatically opposed to the positivist philosophy. It holds that the world does not exist as an objective and external fact but is, in contrast, only given meaning by people. This tradition is also entitled interpretative sociology or a qualitative methodology. It gives expression to one of the main critiques of the positivist approach viz. that there are no such things as objective facts. It can be argued that what we accept as "facts" are in reality conditioned by our beliefs. In Neuman's words (1997, p 46) the argument would be that "We cannot test theories against hard, objective facts because all facts are shaped by our beliefs"; that "Facts we observe are always an imperfect, indirect and distorted representation of what actually exists". The positivist approach was pioneered in the physical sciences and on the basic questions in extending it to other areas of inquiry, especially social science, is whether or not it make sense to treat people in the same way (in the context of research objects) as you would rocks or chemicals. To understand the role of innovative approaches of corporate management and UK development policies in improving lives through globalization, the positivism approach should be followed. III. RESEARCH ETHICS With this kind of research, research ethic should be diligently followed. The research should be methodologically sound and the purpose should be to contribute to knowledge. It should also be undertaken and supervised by those who are appropriately qualified and experienced to ensure that risk, harm and hazards include emotional and mental distress, possible damage to financial and social standing, physical harm and dignity would not occur. In conducting a research, consent from a particular subject and participants should be acquired. Each potential subject should, wherever practicable, be adequately informed of the aims, methods, anticipated benefits and potential hazards of the research and any discomfort it may entail. If an interview will be conducted to a manager of a certain company, it is proper to write a letter informing him of the purpose of the research as well asking for his convenient time to conduct the interview. Any documentation given to potential participants should be comprehensible and appropriate to the targeted participant. There should be an opportunity for them to raise any issues of concern. In asking for consent, the researcher should normally be required in writing and records of consent should be maintained and potential participants must be informed that they are free to withdraw consent to participation at any time, without any adverse implications. Upon gathering the desired data from management staff of globally competitive companies, the confidentiality of the participants as well as the data should be taken care of. Great care must be taken where there is an intention to use data collected for one study, for another study. When personal identifiers are used in a study, researchers should explain why this is necessary and how confidentiality will be protected. IV. SAMPLE SELECTION Sample selection should be approached with a clear idea of what the researcher wants to achieve and how it can be achieved the method of sample selection should be chosen according to the nature of the data (qualitative or quantitative), the proposed method(s) of data analysis, and keeping in mind the aim, objectives, intentions and possible outcomes of the research. There are two basic methods of sample selection: (i) probability sampling, the key component of which is randomness and (ii) non-probability sampling. Probability sampling is used when the researcher wishes to test research hypotheses in order to make predictions and/or to draw conclusions that can be generalised to the research population. Therefore sample size and sample representativeness are key issues for consideration. Non-probability sampling tends to be used for the purpose of illustration, or explanation, or exploration, both in quantitative research to study relatively small groups which may be representative of the population, or in the discovery processes of qualitative research. Method of sample selection include behaviour sampling, cluster sampling, convenience sampling, multi-stage sampling, quota sampling, purposive sampling, simple random sampling, repetitive sampling, snowball sampling stratified sampling, systematic sampling and theoretical sampling (Ineson 2003). V. QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN In this study, the first hand information will be taken from interviews with active organization leaders and companies who are practicing or implementing innovative approaches to corporate management. The data to be analyzed will be taken from surveys or statistics that can be retrieved from various websites. In designing a questionnaire, you must honor the respondents' right to know why they are questioned. That is why at the beginning of the form, you usually put an introduction where you state your organization and how the report of the enquiry is going to be used. Moreover, you should give a deadline for the return, and it is also advisable to include a self addressed, postage paid envelope. In many cases, it would be proper to state to which degree the respondent's statements will be kept confidential. It is often best not to include the respondent's signature or other identification in the form itself. However, you would probably want to put an identification symbol on the envelope. In making a questionnaire, the problem is well defined (perhaps as a hypothesis) and it will not be modified during the project. All the questions to be answered as well as the range of possible answers are known in advance. On the other hand, the questions should involve mostly of facts, quantities or easily definable physical matters. VIII. Bibliography Life Positive (2000). Yoga Benefits. Life Positive Your Complete Guide to Holistic Living. Retrieved August 20, 2006 from http://www.lifepositive.com/Body/yoga/yoga-benefits.asp Ineson, E.M. (2002); Ineson, E.M. (2003) in Ed. Wood, R. and Brotherton. B. Encyclopaedia of hospitality management Neuman, W L (1997) Social Research Methods, Allyn an Bacon Read More