- About Dance and Movement Therapy:
Dance and Movement Therapy (DMT) is defined as the use of movement for psychotherapeutic purposes in order to promote the emotional, social, cognitive and physical integration of the individual, in creative ways. DMT approaches the human being holistically, emphasising on the connection of body and mind and argues that movement can reflect the personality and the psychological states of the individual. According to DMT, a change in movement can affect individuals’ total functioning.As a therapeutic approach, it seeks to understand the symbolic function of people’s movement patterns in order to reveal unconscious processes happening within the individual. It is implemented both in groups and individually, clinical and non-clinical populations and has a numerous of benefits on well-being, body awareness, social skills, physical and mental health.
While implementing these workshops, always keep in mind that they are nottherapeutic sessions and as a facilitator you do not have any therapeutic role. Those workshops are DMT inspired workshops used in order to help the participants increase their confidence, social and communication skills, interpersonal and intergroup relations etc.
- References and Resources – Further information on DMT and Intergroup Contact Theory:
American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA) (2009). General Questions. Retrieved from https://adta.org/faqs/.
Corteville, M. K. (2009). Dance your way to communication: Dance movement therapy to increase self-esteem, poor body image, and communication skills in high school females.
Everett, J. A. (2013). Intergroup contact theory: Past, present, and future. The Inquisitive Mind, 2(17), 1-6.
Jeong, Y. J., Hong, S. C., Lee, M. S., Park, M. C., Kim, Y. K., & Suh, C. M. (2005). Dance movement therapy improves emotional responses and modulates neurohormones in adolescents with mild depression. International journal of neuroscience, 115(12), 1711-1720.
Koch, S., Kunz, T., Lykou, S., & Cruz, R. (2014). Effects of dance movement therapy and dance on health-related psychological outcomes: A meta-analysis. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 41(1), 46-64.
Koch, S. C., Mehl, L., Sobanski, E., Sieber, M., & Fuchs, T. (2015). Fixing the mirrors: A feasibility study of the effects of dance movement therapy on young adults with autism spectrum disorder. Autism, 19(3), 338-350.
Meekums, B. (2002). Dance movement therapy: A creative psychotherapeutic approach. Sage.
Payne, H. (2003). Dance movement therapy: Theory and practice. Routledge.
Pettigrew, T. F. (1998). Intergroup contact theory. Annual review of psychology, 49(1), 65-85.
- During Dance and Movement therapy-oriented workshops, General tips for the educator:
* Participants and facilitator(s) should come in comfortable clothes and during the workshop it is suggested that they are barefoot.
* It is suggested that these workshops are conducted with music. Given the multicultural nature of the workshops, music can also come from different cultural backgrounds, or participants could themselves suggest music for some of the activities. Due to the nature of the workshop, a room with a soft floor (for example wooden or linoleum floor) would be desirable. Moreover, some small pillows could be helpful for the participants to sit on while discussing.
*At the beginning of the workshop, facilitator is encouraged to warmly greet the participants and briefly introduce them to the workshop. When introducing the workshop, make sure that you mention to the participants that this is a safe spacewhere they can feel free to express themselves, bodies and thoughts. There is no right or wrong and mistakes are allowed and desirable. The workshop is not for dancers or dance skills. The workshop is about free movement. They should respectall the other participants and treat everybody equally. Everyone cares for everyone in the workshop and make sure that their partner’s safety is ensured. They should also be reinsured that whatever happens within the workshop, remains in the workshop. If at any point they do not feel comfortable with something, they can always discuss it with the rest of the group. Make clear that this is not a Dance and Movement Therapy session, rather a DMT techniques inspired workshop. The role of the facilitator is not the role of the therapist. If a participant feels that they need to see a therapist, they can discuss this with the facilitator so that the facilitator can guide them appropriately. It is important to set some clear boundaries in regard to the facilitator’s role.
*Gently make sure that participants are not partnering only with members of the ingroup and that they are not partnering with the same people. In larger groups, make sure that there is a diversity in the group of participants. That is, it will be better if participants cooperate with people who are different from them at the level of nationality, religion, gender etc. This will ensure that diversity of the participants is being used in favour of the projects aims.