What does the literature say about the psychosocial effect of Tai Chi?

Tai Chi is a Chinese exercise practised worldwide to help maintain good health.
Despite the extensive reviews that have been carried out on the physiological benefits of Tai Chi, relatively little attention has been paid to studying the psychosocial aspects of the exercise. This literature review aims to describe the studies conducted on the psychosocial effects of Tai Chi, identify the knowledge gap, and discuss the implications for future research. A range of databases – including CINAHL, MEDLINE, Embase, PsychINFO, and The Cochrane Library – were searched to identify relevant studies performed until 2015. Studies were considered eligible if they examined the psychosocial effects of Tai Chi and were published in refereed journals. The selected studies were analyzed with respect to their research design, methodology, strengths, and weaknesses. The findings of the reviewed studies were compared and discussed. Sixty studies published between 1989 and 2015 were identified and analyzed. Previous studies generally suggest that Tai Chi has the potential to enhance one’s psychological well-being, but the existing evidence is geared towards the healthy older population practising Tai Chi in the form of a group programme. The social effect of Tai Chi has not been systematically evaluated. Comparison between studies is difficult because previous studies have adopted different durations, frequencies, and styles of Tai Chi practice, and committed various methodological flaws. It is concluded that the existing evidence cannot give a promising conclusion on the psychosocial effect of Tai Chi. A stringent research design is necessary to establish evidence on the psychosocial effect of Tai Chi.