RESEARCH AT THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SPORT SCIENCES AT THE WINGATE INSTITUTE
The mission of the College Research Authority is to support College researchers and promote excellence in the study of the Movement Sciences, Sports and Physical Education. For many years, the College faculty has been at the forefront of research in these subjects in Israel. College researchers have worked in cooperation with researchers from the best academic institutions in Israel and the world. This site will shed light on the areas of research interest and publications of College researchers in recent years.
Main Directions of Research – Overview
The traditional areas of research in the Movement and Sports Sciences, the basic areas of research at the College, include biomechanical and psychomotor analysis of movement and sport skills, physiological measurement of physical effort, and additional aspects of competitive and other types of sports. Changes in the modern world have raised research questions in these domains that were not asked in the past. The transition from an active to a sedentary life style, which has brought in its wake myriad health problems and chronic ailments, has made purposeful physical activity an essential means of promoting and maintaining health. Thus, in addition to the classic subjects of study, the College in recent years has also investigated the connection between physical activity and physical and mental health, as well as issues pertaining to motivation to engage in physical activity.
Because movement and physical activity are recognized as essential for healthful living, research has expanded to include many age groups and populations for whom physical activity is a challenge. And so, College researchers have engaged in issues such as “Motivation to physical activity among children with intellectual disabilities”, “Measuring energy expenditure among children with cerebral palsy” or “Physical activity and cognitive functioning among the elderly.”
Physical activity and sports have earned an important place in modern life, in no small part because of their potential contribution to promoting intellectual, emotional and social development. Recognizing its responsibility to instill appropriate physical activity and sports habits from a young age, the College has opened new channels of research in teaching Physical Education in formal and informal settings. New teaching techniques such as “cooperative learning” or “Giving homework in Physical Education” have been studied, and questions have been investigated, such as: “Are pupils who engage in sports less violent than those who do not participate in sport?”
The world of sports is also progressing and changing, and in the process has become one of the most important social and cultural phenomena of modern times. The growth of the leisure industry has led to research questions in Sociology pertaining to “sports and politics,” “sports and gambling” and “sports and violence.” At the same time, sports management and economics have become subjects of research in the Management Sciences, and sports training has become an object of research in Sports Psychology. Issues that have been investigated include modern methods of sports training, identifying young talents in sports, and analyzing sports skills biomechanically, physiologically and psychologically. At the same time, realization has grown that success in various sports may be affected by our genes, opening a channel of research in genetics and sports. Research at the College in this domain focuses mainly on the genetic characterization of athletes and genetic analysis of sports skills.
Research Laboratories
Changes in the modern world have also included tremendous technological progress that has enabled science to penetrate deeply into the movement system and motor behavior. Because the College recognizes the importance of research at the highest level, it has developed research laboratories in Biomechanics, for the study of muscular system elements of movement; Anatomy, for studies of the skeletal system; Physiology, for studies of the cardiovascular system and physical effort; Teaching, for researching methods of teaching Physical Education; and Molecular Biology, for researching questions of genetics and sports.
Prof. Yael Netz
Head, Research Authority