Development of creative intelligence in physical education and sports science students through body expression

Abstract

Body expression can enhance movement creativity and at the same time promote the growth of creative intelligence in college age. The aim of this study was to analyze the influence of an intervention in body expression classes on the creative intelligence of university students. The 49 participants aged 19 to 38 years engaged in the body expression course for seven weeks, 3 h per week. The Creative Intelligence test (CREA) was applied as an evaluative method to obtain the initial data and after the intervention the test was reapplied. Pre-and post-test results were analyzed and compared by gender and type of sporting background (team or individual sports). The results indicate an overall improvement in creative intelligence with a significant difference between the two evaluations (p < 0.001). Women started with a higher score than men, and although an improvement in their final mean score could be observed, it was not significant. Men, on the other hand, had noted a significant increase (p < 0.001) of these values in the post-test. Regarding the type of sports, at the beginning of the study, both groups had similar results; however, in the final test, the team sports players obtained better scores. In conclusion, body expression, thanks to its content focused on artistic-creative development, has been shown to be useful in the general progression of creative intelligence in college age.