Panacea Index Logo

Command Palette

Search for a command to run...

Who practices yoga? A systematic review of demographic, health-related, and psychosocial factors associated with yoga practice.

Journal of behavioral medicine
June 1, 2015
Crystal L Park et al. (3 authors)
Journal ArticleReviewSystematic ReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to systematically review the characteristics and correlates of individuals who independently choose to practice yoga, including its relationship with psychosocial factors like mindfulness.

Results Summary

Yoga practice is associated with favorable psychosocial factors such as coping and mindfulness, better subjective health, and health behaviors, but also with more distress and physical impairment. However, the evidence is sparse, and methodological limitations prevent causal inferences.

Population

Individuals who independently practice yoga, primarily women and those with higher socioeconomic status.

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (7)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
yoga practice
increase
yoga use
women
-
is greatest among
#1
yoga practice
increase
yoga use
those with higher socioeconomic status
-
is greatest among
#2
yoga practice
increase
psychosocial factors
-
-
appears favorably related to
#3
yoga practice
increase
subjective health
-
-
relates to better
#4
yoga practice
increase
health behaviors
-
-
relates to better
#5
yoga practice
increase
distress
-
-
relates with more
#6
yoga practice
increase
physical impairment
-
-
relates with more
#7
Abstract

Yoga has become increasingly popular in the US and around the world, yet because most yoga research is conducted as clinical trials or experiments, little is known about the characteristics and correlates of people who independently choose to practice yoga. We conducted a systematic review of this issue, identifying 55 studies and categorizing correlates of yoga practice into sociodemographics, psychosocial characteristics, and mental and physical well-being. Yoga use is greatest among women and those with higher socioeconomic status and appears favorably related to psychosocial factors such as coping and mindfulness. Yoga practice often relates to better subjective health and health behaviors but also with more distress and physical impairment. However, evidence is sparse and methodological limitations preclude drawing causal inferences. Nationally representative studies have minimally assessed yoga while studies with strong assessment of yoga practice (e.g., type, dose) are generally conducted with convenience samples. Almost all studies reviewed are cross-sectional and few control for potential confounding variables. We provide recommendations for future research to better understand the correlates of yoga practice.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
AdultAgedCross-Sectional StudiesDemographyFemaleHealth BehaviorHumansLife StyleMaleMeditationMiddle AgedMotivationQuality of LifeStatistics as TopicUnited StatesYoga
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy65/10
Quality60/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations72
Citations/Year7.2
Relative Citation Ratio4.28
NIH Percentile91.1%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.95
Weight Score1.61
Normalized Score0.58
Related Supplements