Scientific research conducted in 2010 by the area of well-being sciences and relationships at Natura validates the combination of touch and playful activities to increase well-being and strengthen the bond between grandparents and grandchildren.
In recent decades, there have been significant changes regarding lifestyle and living styles, in social, cultural, and economic dimensions. This change has also affected relationships between generations, which may have led to a certain distancing between grandparents and grandchildren. We know that emotional involvement, dialogue, and touch can express love, trust, affection, human warmth, and can be the link for reapproaching different generations.
As age advances, difficulties in hearing, visual acuity, mobility, and vitality increase, thus raising tactile needs.
"In the emotional involvement of touch, it is possible to communicate love, trust, affection, and human warmth to the elderly" (MONTAGU, 1988).
According to research by Ashley Montagu, “the language of the senses, in which we can all be socialized, is capable of enhancing our appreciation of others and the world we live in, and deepening our understanding of them.” Touch is one of the main languages of the senses as it attests to the existence of a reality that goes beyond the self and is one of the most powerful means of creating human relationships.
Massage is one of the interventions developed to reduce stress, alleviate anxiety, improve circulation, and generally stimulate a state of well-being. The development, by various cultures, of some form of touch therapy suggests that different ways of massaging are natural manifestations of the desire to heal and care for one another. Massage is probably one of the most well-documented forms of complementary therapies and is a widely used technique (http://www.ccnursing.theclinics.com/article/S0899-5885(02)00103-X/fulltext).[b1] Among the different massage techniques validated worldwide, rhythmic massage, developed by Ita Wegman and Margarethe Hauschka, stands out, in which the movements of touch take their form based on universal movements, such as the rising of waves and the circles that celestial bodies traverse. Rhythmic Massage was developed according to the principles of Anthroposophical Medicine and was used in this research as inspiration for creating the gestures.
Research
Our research integrated various fields of knowledge (anthroposophy, psychoanalysis, positive psychology, linguistics, and statistics) to validate the combination of massage and playful activities (gesture) between grandparents and grandchildren as a promoter of increased well-being and the strengthening of the bond, dialogue, and relationship between them. We used an integral approach as our methodology. This approach allows the same person to be seen and evaluated in different emotional, behavioral, cultural, and social aspects.
Results
The results were surprising and demonstrated that the gesture (massage + interactive album) contributed to an improvement in the affection of the grandchildren. The reduction in the dominance of the self compared indicates that the grandchildren began to compare themselves less with their friends, also suggesting an increase in self-esteem. Furthermore, the gesture allowed for a closer connection with the grandparents, perceiving them more clearly and valuing them. Our results indicated that the combination of touch and playful activities increased social interaction between grandparents and grandchildren. Indeed, in interviews, the grandchildren reported having reduced the time spent on self-centered activities, such as watching television, playing video games, and using the computer, in favor of experiencing the interactive activities proposed by the album with their grandparents.
The activities proposed in the album establish a new form of dialogue: the grandchildren learn things about their grandparents that they had never imagined. For the grandparents, the gesture promoted greater awareness of the present moment, their bodies, and the outside world, and provided the rediscovery of the pleasure of being cared for. Being cared for by their grandchildren seems to have touched the grandparents, not only physically but emotionally. The album consists of a very important playful environment, as it brings the grandfather and the child to the same plane, despite the significant generational gap. For the grandfather, it allows for the recovery of play, the playful, awakening the child's curiosity to learn a little more about their grandfather and, through him, glimpse the past, present, and future.
Although there are previous studies reporting the role of touch in the development of the bond between mothers and babies, and of games and play to promote social interactions among children, this research is the first scientific study to show that the combination of massage and playful activities has the potential to reduce the generational distance between grandparents and grandchildren.
The study reported here was developed by researchers at Natura: Cláudia Pellegrino, Ph.D.; Patricia Tobo, Ph.D.; and Helder Kamei, M.Sc., integrated with a network of external consultants formed by Helena Britto, Ph.D.; Marieta Marques, Ph.D.; Maria Cecília de Vilhena Moraes Silva, Ph.D.; Maria Adelina Rennó, Ph.D.; and Márcia Marques Pereira.
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To learn more about the research on gestures
BURKHARD, G. Taking life into your own hands. 1st ed. Anthroposophical, 2000;
BURKHARD, G. Anthroposophical bases of biographical methodology: the daily biography. Anthroposophical Publishing, 2002;
HAUSCHKA, M. Rhythmic Massage according to Ita Wegman: Anthropological Foundations. 3rd ed. Anthroposophical, 2007;
KEEGAN L. Therapies to reduce stress and anxiety. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 15:321-327, 2003;
MONTAGU, ASHLEY. Touch: the human significance of skin. 9th ed. Summus, 1988;
MORAES, W. A. Anthroposophical medicine: a paradigm for the 21st century. 2nd ed. Brazilian Association of Anthroposophical Medicine, 2007.
