HomeBody awareness: therapy, practice, pedagogy

Body awareness: therapy, practice, pedagogy

Body awareness : thérapie, pratique, pédagogie

*  *  *

Published on Monday, February 23, 2026

Abstract

English Français

The theme of body awareness has been chosen for this conference, given the marked resurgence of interest in "reconnecting" with the body and sensations in our contemporary societies. We will concentrate on the different areas where body awareness offers new perspectives of practice and research, from healthcare to education, including the arts and sports. However, the increased visibility of this concept has also led to a proliferation of discourses and practices lacking any real conceptual or methodological foundation. These are often driven by the growing popularity of alternative or New Age approaches. The aim of this conference is to clarify the current situation by distinguishing between knowledge and practices that are supported by research and those that are not.

Announcement

English Français

Argument

The theme of body awareness has been chosen for this conference, given the marked resurgence of interest in "reconnecting" with the body and sensations in our contemporary societies. We will concentrate on the different areas where body awareness offers new perspectives of practice and research, from healthcare to education, including the arts and sports.

However, the increased visibility of this concept has also led to a proliferation of discourses and practices lacking any real conceptual or methodological foundation. These are often driven by the growing popularity of alternative or New Age approaches (Stea, 2024; Tiller et al., 2023).The aim of this conference is to clarify the current situation by distinguishing between knowledge and practices that are supported by research and those that are not.

Our interdisciplinary approach in the social and human sciences aims to provide a space for reflection on body awareness methodologies. This applies to the fields of healthcare (Vancampfort et al., 2023), learning and education (Aartun et al., 2022), practices and bodily expertise (Khalsa et al., 2008). This cultural, clinical and educational movement raises a central question: What challenges are involved in developing body awareness? 

Therapy

The first theme focuses on the challenges of body awareness in healthcare. It explores how body awareness can serve as a relevant indicator for therapeutic follow-up and a clinical variable to document an individual's condition, guide interventions and facilitate change (Garfinkel et al., 2015; Khalsa et al., 2018; Mehling, 2020). The theme will also address assessment methods, asking how improvements in body awareness can be objectively measured and which tools and criteria can be used, while considering the methodological limitations.

Furthermore, the presentations will challenge the conceptual frameworks of these approaches and their scientific validity. The rise of body-focused interventions has highlighted the need for two things. Firstly, there is a need to clarify their theoretical foundations. Secondly, there is a need to examine the available empirical data. Thirdly, there is a need to define standards to differentiate between approaches that are truly substantiated and those that are based on untested models (Cena et al., 2024; Simera et al., 2010). The challenge is to better situate body awareness within the landscape of contemporary psychocorporal interventions by articulating scientific standards, clinical relevance and critical vigilance

Pedagogy

The focus of this theme is on the role of bodily awareness in embodied pedagogies, with a particular emphasis on how sensory approaches can enhance perceptual skills. Contributions are welcome on teaching methods, empirical analyses and theoretical reflections that question physical, perceptual and sensory training for learners.

The contemporary rise of embodied pedagogies (Aartun et al., 2022; Chatelain et al., 2025) profoundly challenges conceptions of the body in education: from the body as an instrument to the body as an object of attention, questioning learners' reflexivity. Research in phenomenology (Andrieu et al., 2018; Jacquot et al., 2023), sociology, and sensory anthropology (Breton, 2011; Howes, 2019; Wathelet, 2012) show that explicit learning can focus on listening to and interpreting bodily sensations, constructing body language, and developing perceptual benchmarks. Some studies draw on the concepts of 'perceptual skills' (Paintendre et al., 2019; Schirrer, 2018; Wathelet, 2012) and 'perceptual competence' (Paintendre et al., 2020). This refers to an individual's ability to use their sensory perceptions to guide their actions, make decisions and adapt their behaviour in a given situation. In other words, it is not just a matter of receiving a sensation, but of perceiving, interpreting and using it as a resource for action. These concepts also seem to facilitate the (re)appropriation of the body by learners or practitioners, who develop new sensory reference points through lived experience.

However, these skills do not emerge spontaneously. They are fostered by explicit educational processes. These processes aim to develop sensitivity. They focus on listening, discrimination, naming, and interpreting bodily sensations. This approach is exemplified by methodologies that engage students and learners in sensory, reflective, and embodied experiences, thereby paving the way for a more refined bodily awareness. Overall, this work demonstrates that these teaching methods refine the ability to pay attention to the world, recognise and experience the sensory dimensions of life, and support the development of a situated and relational body awareness.

Practice

The focus of this theme is on how body awareness is cultivated and shaped in physical practice, sports and artistic contexts. Bodily experience is key to enhancing physical and sensory expertise, which is crucial for performance and training. Body awareness has already been explored in various fields, including circus arts, musical practice, and dance (Andrieu et al., 2020; Buttingsrud, 2021; Leigh-Post, 2017).

Contributions may question how the ability to inhabit one's movements and adjust one's perception during action is constructed and realised in these contexts. They may also address the concept of the physical curriculum (Andrieu et al., 2020; Jacquot et al., 2023), which is defined as the set of explicit sensorimotor, attentional and expressive learning experiences that shape the development of athletes, artists and professionals. The aim of this focus is to shed light on how body awareness becomes a means of acquiring competence and creativity.  It will also be explored how body awareness is reflected in the ability to adapt in these practices, in which the body is simultaneously the tool, the field, and the subject matter of the work (Foultier, 2023).

Submission guidelines

There are two types of proposal you can submit: an oral presentation or a workshop. All proposals must be submitted by the authors in the form of an abstract. Each submission must include a title and an abstract of no more than 500 words, as well as a bibliography (which is not included in the 500-word limit). Abstracts must explain the link with the framing text and provide details of the context, issue and methodology used.

For submissions relating to a practical workshop: The theoretical and scientific framework must meet the same requirements as those for oral presentations. After the abstract, please specify the duration, maximum number of participants and type of space required. For the conference, practice rooms and meeting rooms will be available.

Workshops may last between 45 minutes and one and a half hours.

Submission evaluation criteria:

  • Quality of content
  • Theoretical or practical interest
  • Originality and degree of innovation
  • Relevance of knowledge produced
  • Quality of writing

Please submit your proposals via the platform: BodyAwareness.sciencesconf.org,

before April 15th

Calendar

  • Submission deadline: April 15th
  • Feedback to authors: May 20, 2026
  • Preliminary program: June 2026

Contact : Agostinucci@unistra.fr

Scientific committee

  • Agostinucci Marie, Unité de recherche en sport et sciences sociales (UR1342), Faculté des sciences du sport, Université de Strasbourg
  • Andrieu Bernard, Institut des sciences du sport-santé de Paris (UPR3625), UFR STAPS, Université Paris Cité
  • Boutineau Jérôme, Laboratoire de psychologie clinique, psychopathologie et psychanalyse (PCPP, UR4056), Université Paris Cité
  • Chatelain Sabine, Laboratoire Création et Recherche dans l'Enseignement des Arts et de la Technologie (CREAT), Haute École pédagogique de Vaud
  • Cornus Sabine, Unité de recherche en sport et sciences sociales (UR1342), Faculté des sciences du sport, Université de Strasbourg
  • Jacquot Erwann, Institut des sciences du sport-santé de Paris (UPR3625), UFR STAPS, Université Paris Cité
  • Liné Claire, Centre de Recherche en Psychologie : Cognition, Psychisme et Organisation, (UR 7273) , Université Picardie Jules Verne
  • Lefèvre Lisa, Unité de recherche en sport et sciences sociales (UR1342), Haute école pédagogique de Vaud, Suisse
  • Paintendre Aline, laboratoire PSMS (EA 7507), UFR STAPS de Reims, Université de Reims Champagne Ardenne
  • Paumel Charlotte, CEDITEC, Université paris Est Créteil (Paris 12), Université Paris Cité, Hôpital intercommunal de Créteil
  • Sayeux Anne-Sophie, Institut des sciences du sport-santé de Paris (UPR3625), Université Clermont-Auvergne
  • Schirrer Mary, LISEC (UR 2310), Faculté des sciences du sport de Nancy, Université de Lorraine

References

Aartun, I., Walseth, K., Standal, Ø. F., & Kirk, D. (2022). Pedagogies of embodiment in physical education – a literature review. Sport, Education and Society, 27(1), 1‑13. https://doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2020.1821182

Andrieu, B., Bender, R., Collard, J., Dietrich, G., Fasoli, G., & Thomas, C. (2020). Théorie du corps lors de l’émersion de ses sensations internes : Les dessins de conscience au Centre National des Arts du Cirque. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evopsy.2020.09.003

Andrieu, B., Parry, J., Porrovecchio, A., & Sirost, O. (2018). Body Ecology and Emersive Leisure (1re éd.). Routledge.

Breton, D. L. (2011). Anthropologie du corps et modernité. Presses Universitaires de France. https://doi.org/10.3917/puf.lebre.2011.01

Buttingsrud, C. (2021). Bodies in skilled performance : How dancers reflect through the living body. Synthese, 199(3), 7535‑7554. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11229-021-03127-2

Cena, E., Brooks, J., Day, W., Goodman, S., Rousaki, A., Ruby-Granger, V., & Seymour-Smith, S. (2024). Quality Criteria : General and Specific Guidelines for Qualitative Approaches in Psychology Research. A Concise Guide for Novice Researchers and Reviewers. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 23, 16094069241282843. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069241282843

Chatelain, S., Lefèvre, L., Ramsamy, P., & Delcroix, A. (2025). La place du corps dans l’enseignement supérieur. Presses universitaires des Antilles. https://www.lalibrairie.com/index.php/livres/la-place-du-corps-dans-l-enseignement-superieur_0-13900953_9782488234177.html

Foultier, A. P. (2023). Letting the body find its way : Skills, expertise, and Bodily Reflection. Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences, 22(4), 799‑820. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-022-09838-2

Garfinkel, S. N., Seth, A. K., Barrett, A. B., Suzuki, K., & Critchley, H. D. (2015). Knowing your own heart : Distinguishing interoceptive accuracy from interoceptive awareness. Biological Psychology, 104, 65‑74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2014.11.004

Howes, D. (2019). Multisensory anthropology. Annual Review of Anthropology, 48, 17‑28.

Jacquot, E., Andrieu, B., & Paintendre, A. (2023).Toucher et être touché, expérience corporelle du toucher ostéopathique. Soins Psychiatrie, 44(349), 23‑26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spsy.2023.09.008

Khalsa, S., Rudrauf, D., Damasio, A., Davidson, R., Lutz, A., & Tranel, D. (2008). Interoceptive awareness in experienced meditators. Psychophysiology, 45 4, 671‑677. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-8986.2008.00666.x

Khalsa, S. S., Adolphs, R., Cameron, O. G., Critchley, H. D., Davenport, P. W., Feinstein, J. S., Feusner, J. D., Garfinkel, S. N., Lane, R. D., Mehling, W. E., Meuret, A. E., Nemeroff, C. B., Oppenheimer, S., Petzschner, F. H., Pollatos, O., Rhudy, J. L., Schramm, L. P., Simmons, W. K., Stein, M. B., … Zucker, N. (2018). Interoception and Mental Health : A Roadmap. Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, 3(6), 501‑513. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpsc.2017.12.004

Leigh-Post, K. (2017). Mind-Body Awareness for Singers : Unleashing Optimal Performance. Plural Publishing.

Mehling, W. E. (2020). If It All Comes Down to Bodily Awareness, How Do We Know? Assessing Bodily Awareness. Kinesiology Review, 9(3), 254‑260. https://doi.org/10.1123/kr.2020-0021

Paintendre, A., Schirrer, M., & Andrieu, B. (2019). Développer des savoir-faire perceptifs en Éducation Physique et Sportive : Analyse de l’activité d’élèves engagés dans une séquence d’enseignement de step. Activités, 16‑1, Article 16‑1. https://doi.org/10.4000/activites.4055

Paintendre, A., Schirrer, M., & Sève, C. (2020). Pour une éducation sensorielle à travers les activités physiques : Analyse de pratique et pistes professionnelles. eJRIEPS. Ejournal de la recherche sur l’intervention en éducation physique et sport, Numéro spécial 3. https://doi.org/10.4000/ejrieps.4382

Schirrer, M. (2018). Construire des savoir-faire perceptifs en apnée:Une méthode de réflexivité en action coach-pratiquant. Movement & Sport Sciences - Science & Motricité, 99(1), 35‑46. https://doi.org/10.3917/sm.099.0035

Simera, I., Moher, D., Hoey, J., Schulz, K. F., & Altman, D. G. (2010). A catalogue of reporting guidelines for health research. European Journal of Clinical Investigation, 40(1), 35‑53. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2362.2009.02234.x

Stea, J. N. (2024). Mind the Science : Saving Your Mental Health from the Wellness Industry. Oxford University Press Inc.

Tiller, N. B., Sullivan, J. P., & Ekkekakis, P. (2023). Baseless Claims and Pseudoscience in Health and Wellness : A Call to Action for the Sports, Exercise, and Nutrition-Science Community. Sports Medicine, 53(1), 1‑5. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-022-01702-2

Vancampfort, D., Brunner, E., Van Damme, T., & Stubbs, B. (2023). Efficacy of basic body awareness therapy on functional outcomes : A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Physiotherapy Research International, 28(1), e1975. https://doi.org/10.1002/pri.1975

Wathelet, O. (2012). Apprendre à voir. L’Homme. Revue française d’anthropologie, 201, 121‑130. https://doi.org/10.4000/lhomme.22980

Event attendance modalities

Full on-site event


Date(s)

  • Wednesday, April 15, 2026

Keywords

  • conscience corporelle, réflexivité, interdisciplinarité, pratiques corporelles

Reference Urls

Information source

  • Marie AGOSTINUCCI
    courriel : agostinucci [at] unistra [dot] fr

License

CC0-1.0 This announcement is licensed under the terms of Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal.

To cite this announcement

« Body awareness: therapy, practice, pedagogy », Call for papers, Calenda, Published on Monday, February 23, 2026, https://doi.org/10.58079/15r23

Archive this announcement

  • Google Agenda
  • iCal
Search OpenEdition Search

You will be redirected to OpenEdition Search