TRENDS OF STUDIES IN THE FIELD OF KINESIOLOGY IN JAPAN

Abstract

Kinesiology is inviting keen interests among the physical educators in Japan. For example, twelve young kinesiologists presented their results in various international conferences in these three years. Considering the fact that there were fourteen presentations of such nature ever made in its young history by the Japanese researchers, the trend is more than significant in that the futue of research activities in kinesiology is quite promissed. It should be remembered, however, that noticeable number of books in the said field had been published since 1920. It was 1957 when the Division of Studies in Kinesiolology was first established in the Japanese Society of Physical Education. The number of research results presented in the annual convention since amounts to 682, while 83 studies have have published in the current journal. The development of studies in kinesiology as traced by these research reports may be analyzed as the followings : During the early years, attention was given on the figure and figure controling, and on various body movements by analyzing loci of body parts using pictures and motion films. Later, measurement of physical parameters on the body movements applying electronlc devices has been attempted, and thus, force, velocity and power in relatlon to body movement have been investigated. In the recent years, exertion, transfer and action analysis of strength, by means of electromyography, along with development of EMG integrator, has accelerated the research activities. The scope of research has been widened now, due to application of telemeter apparatus. The epoch making event in the research trend of kinesiology was the First National Kinesiology Seminar, held in July, 1972, in Nagoya City, to which l00 researchers attended under the title of "Kinesiological studies of human power." With the zest and energy of the participants, instructional and discussion sessions took place, about various devices of kinesiological studies, including EMG, computer system, photography and electronic apparatuses. The seminar was a great success indicating the growth of the group of people as well as the promissing future of kinesiology in Japan.