Investigating the Relationship between Somatotype and Temperament (Mizaj) in Non-athletic Male Students

Abstract

Introduction: Somatotype is one of the effective factors in predicting the success of athletes in various sports. Somatotype can be a determining factor in individual differences. In traditional Iranian medicine, the relationship between people’s temperaments (Mizaj) on the one hand and their physical structure and physiological and psychological performance on the other has been discussed. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between somatotype and Mizaj in male non-athlete university students in Mashhad. Materials and Methods: This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on male students at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in the winter of 2016. The sample consisted of 200 individuals who were divided into four groups of 50 people based on their Mizaj: warm and wet, warm and dry, cold and wet, and cold and dry. The relationship between the Mizaj index and somatotype was investigated using the Eta correlation coefficient method. Data analysis and hypothesis testing were tested in SPSS software version 21 with a significance level of p ≥ 0.05. Results: Statistical results showed that the Eta correlation coefficient between the endomorphic type and Mizaj was 0.89. The results of one-way analysis of variance showed that cold and wet Mizaj had a significantly higher endomorphic score than other types of Mizaj (4.91±0.58) (P=0.001). Moreover, the correlation coefficient of Eta between mesomorphic type and Mizaj was 0.924. It was also found that the warm and wet Mizaj had the significantly highest mesomorphic score (5.12±0.49). The correlation coefficient of Eta between ectomorphic type and Mizaj was 0.946 (P=0.001), and cold and dry Mizaj had the significantly highest ectomorphic score compared to other types of Mizaj (4.83±0.45). Conclusion: The results of this study showed that there was a significant relationship between Mizaj and the body type of young men. Therefore, since the structure of a person’s body type can be a predictor of success in any of the various sports, Mizaj can be used to determine a person’s athletic talent.