Morning yoga as an embodied regulatory practice: longitudinal changes in children’s self-esteem and gratitude following participation in a school-based yoga program
Frontiers in Psychology July 23, 2026 Shoichi Shiota, Takahiro Ohitokata, Hiroshi Harada
A pilot study of 401 Japanese elementary school children who participated in a 15-minute weekly "Asa (morning) yoga" program over six months found that self-esteem and gratitude scores were significantly higher after the program than before. The program included physical postures, breathing techniques, attention-focused meditation, and loving-kindness meditation. The authors suggest that school-based yoga may be associated with positive changes in socio-emotional outcomes, but caution that the absence of a control group prevents causal interpretation.