05/01/2026
Physical interaction: Powerful understanding.
In communication training, learning outcomes are often framed as techniques: better questions, clearer arguments, stronger structures.
In our mixed-methods study on aikido-based communication training, participants described something else. They spoke of eye-openers, surprising insights, and experiences with a lasting impact.
What they learned was not a mere list of techniques, but an embodied understanding of interaction. Aikido made communication strategies physically tangible through distance, timing, posture, interaction, and responsiveness.
That shift, participants reported, stayed with them long after the training ended.
— De Baets et al. (2025), Journal of Experiential Education
Read the blogpost: https://word-dancing-together.blogspot.com/2026/01/thought-provoking-physical-understanding.html
