ATEAM Commentary Part I
A newsletter to help you stay connected to Alexander Technique related research.
The ASO Newsletter - 5th Edition
Thank you for being here and for your interest in research on the Alexander Technique and its teaching.
The Researcher Interview Series continues with a turn to some of the clinical research that has evaluated the effectiveness of Alexander lessons for people with various health-related conditions. This month and next month we are focusing on the ATEAM back pain trial.
ATEAM Commentary Part I
In this first interview conducted by Julia Woodman BSc, PhD, MSTAT, and Charlotte Woods EdD, MSTAT, we explore the study design, outcomes assessed and main findings of the ATEAM trial.
About Julia Woodman: Julia has been active in research on the Alexander Technique since 2010, and is Chair of the STAT Research Group. She was a core member of the study team for the randomised controlled clinical trial, ATLAS. Julia’s background is in immunology research, followed by 20 years working with clinical research in biotech and medical communications. She qualified from the Manchester Alexander Training school in 2006, and is now Head of Training at Edinburgh Alexander Training School.
About Charlotte Woods: Charlotte Woods retired from a Senior Lectureship at the Manchester Institute of Education, University of Manchester in 2016 after almost forty years of international experience in education. She qualified as a teacher of the Alexander Technique in 2017 and is a member of the STAT Research Group.
Additional information on the ATEAM trial
To learn more about the ATEAM trail you can follow the links below:
Main publication from the ATEAM trial: Little P, Lewith G, Webley F, et al. Randomised controlled trial of Alexander Technique lessons, exercise and massage (ATEAM) for chronic and recurrent back pain. British Medical Journal 2008;337:a884
Video made to accompany the publication of the main findings in the BMJ – consists of commentaries by some of the trial participants and Alexander teachers who taught in the trial, as well as Paul Little, the Principal Investigator
Research section of the STAT website
Brief summary of the main findings
Review of evidence mentioned in the interview – this evaluates the ATEAM findings in detail (note: link is to a pre-publication version which is free to view, unlike the final published journal article)
Additionally for members of STAT: you can find slide sets for use with healthcare professional and lay audiences and A4 handout summaries. These are available from the Teachers’ Resources section of the STAT website (login required)
Member Contributions and Thanks
As always, we welcome your comments, suggestions and questions. Please use the Comment box below or email us at alexander.studies.online@gmail.com with any information, feedback, or questions. We will do our best to respond to you as soon as possible.
A special thanks to all ASO community members who have contributed to the ASO community so far. We are working hard to integrate all your thoughtful input and materials. Your written contributions, reference updates for the Zotero library, and words of support are appreciated and inspiring. Thank-you!
Coming next newsletter…
In the next ASO newsletter we will return to the ATEAM trial to discuss the results for the individual groups, and we’ll look at how the ATEAM findings sit alongside other Alexander research. We will also talk about the way in which the ATEAM results were reported and taken up, and how this has influenced subsequent research on the Alexander Technique.
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