Psychomotor Therapy Using the Body Schema for the Intellectually Disabled at the A.D.A.R-Tubahoze Centre
Authors:   Faculty of social science master program of psychomotricity-Psycho-trauma and lecturer at Université Anglican de Bukavu (DRC) and Rudolph Kwanue University-Liberia., Dieudonné Safari , Alice Cyuzuzo ,   Midwife at Kibirizi Hospital and College Saint Bernard Kansi as midwife teacher, south province of Rwanda.
Published: March 2024

This study is the preliminary research focused on psychomotor therapy and body schemas for the intellectually disabled, hence the motor dimension with a test of balance, coordination and jumping in the pre-test and post-test of a BPM measurement at 60, 90 and 120 (BPM) with the YO and YC. The cognitive dimension with, for example, the Berces and Lezine test of body control and latero-spatial organization, the Piaget and Head tests of gesture imitation and latero-spatial organization. The affective dimension revolving around self-esteem was measured with the self-perception profile for adults with intellectual disabilities (SPPD) on physical appearance, athletic competence and psychomotor competence. At the end of the verification of research question and using methodological approach adopted on the present study on the motor dimension, the cognitive dimension and the affective dimension; it was found that with the motor dimension on the balance test, a trend on the performance of our intellectually disabled patients from A.D.A.R-Tubahoze centre during the psychomotor therapy sessions was tested positive in the post-test compared to the pre-test (BYO and BYC).With regard to the coordination test (CYO and CYC) at post-test and pre-test, the statistical frequencies with overall averages show that our intellectually impaired patients tended to obtain better results at post-test than at pre-test; this shows a success in the applicability of motor therapy to coordination disorder in intellectually impaired patients. Similarly, a positive performance trend was shown in the results of the jumping test at post-test than at pre-test. The trend in the results of the jump test (JYO and JYC) in the post-test than in the pre-test would have shown a positive result after our therapeutic-motor sessions with the IDs of the A.D.A.R. centre. From the cognitive dimension, using the test of imitation of gestures and lateral-spatial on different movements, has a score of 10 points in the test of imitation of simple gestures of hand movements, it would have been observed in MID patients that the test proved positive; with the Piaget’s Head test of latero-spatial organization administered to MID which was evaluated at a score of 40 points, had as a positive performance to all patients who took this test. The results of our work on the affective dimension of the dominant modality “Rather true”, was observed on items 12, 16, 20 and 24 of self-esteem, with physical appearance vis-à-vis items (5,10,18 and 22) and items 5 and 9 and then items 17, 13 and 1 of athletic competence; from items with a “Rather positive” modality with items 11, 3 and 2 3, 7, 15 and 19 of our MID patients that a positive trend on positive appreciation was satisfactorily observable.