Mismatches as milestones in dance movement therapy

This paper explores the concept of mismatches between verbal and non-verbal content and its relation to dance movement therapy (DMT). Relying on interdisciplinary works in linguistics, developmental psychology and DMT, it is shown that although it might be common belief that DMT deals mainly with matching the patient's movements, in reality, mismatches are very common. Moreover, the article shows how mismatches, applied in a broad sense that includes clashing and opposing in various manners, may become a practical tool in clinical practice. To conclude, examples of how mismatches may be implemented in clinical work are given.     

Embodiment and embedment: integrating dance/movement therapy,body psychotherapy,and ecopsychology

This article presents a vision of an emergent ecosomatic psychology that integrates somatic psychology's theories and practices of embodiment with ecopsychology's insights about embedment. Branches within somatic psychology, dance/movement therapy, and body psychotherapy have honed therapeutic practices for embodying the self, engaging in embodied relationships, and opening up to possibilities of transpersonal experiences through the body and movement. Incorporating ecopsychology's emphasis on the development of an ecological identity, inspired by systems and relational views of health, and drawing from theories of participatory consciousness and reciprocity, an integrative framework of embodied embedment practices are proposed for developing an embodied ecological self.     

Dance/movement therapy and shamanic healing ritual: natural intelligence of body and spirit

This paper offers a model for integrating a dance/movement therapy practice with some of the themes that show up in literature on shamanic healing ritual. The proposed model is based on literature on shamanism and within the field of dance/movement therapy. It is intended as a first step in an exploration between intersections of the two fields. The model proposes cultivating a sacred container as a holding environment for the therapeutic process, within which the themes of natural intelligence, surrender, and nervous system regulation will be woven together, and the potential for sequencing greater healing energy will be discussed. Applications, limitations, and suggestions for further research will also be considered.     

Refugee children and body politics. The embodied political self and dance movement therapy

This article looks at the link between social exclusion and migration, in particular for children. It highlights the impact that being a refugee may have on one’s sense of self. Beyond the concept of acartesian self, our working model suggests a dialogical and multi-voiced self: a self that is not isolated from other aspects of the person but involves social, political and embodied dimensions. The term embodied political self is proposed, referring to the self as an active agent, with a sense of physical cohesion and a sense of belonging to the wider social and political environment. We discuss how experiencing social exclusion impacts refugees, in particular children, and their embodied political self. Finally, a two-step dance movement therapy (DMT) intervention that seeks the reconstruction of the embodied political self is proposed.     

Opposites attract: holistic emotional regulation using dance/movement therapy and the doshas in Ayurveda

This model presents a collaborative and holistic perspective on dance/movement therapy (D/MT) and Ayurveda. This approach suggests that the dance/movement therapist takes into account all range and manner of an individual’s movement repertoire and uses these observations to construct therapeutic interventions that build upon body types and movement preferences represented in Ayurveda. Both D/MT and Ayurveda share the value of achieving a sense of regulation through the use of opposite qualities of movement, which will be explored in depth through the lenses of Laban Movement Analysis and the Kestenberg Movement Profile. Several examples of interventions the therapist might utilise are provided. Further considerations exploring the growth of this model in the future and limitations are also included in this article.     

Dance movement psychotherapy for couples (DMP-C): systematic treatment guidelines based on a wide-ranging study

ABSTRACT

A new body of knowledge, growing out of the clinical and research fields, has been developing in recent years in the area of dance-movement psychotherapy for couples (DMP-C). Formulation of an intervention protocol based on a systematic review of theories and research is crucial to scientifically establishing the field and to implementing research findings in clinical practice. The present article reviews the results of a comprehensive qualitative research study in DMP-C, which addresses the following topics: couple intake, expectations of couples seeking therapy, a projective identification mechanism in the couple relationship, desires and expectations in the sexual relationship, synchrony in the non-verbal relationship, somatic mirroring, and kinaesthetic empathy in the couple relationship. Based on the findings of the research, a systematic intervention protocol for couples psychotherapy through movement and dance has been developed; its unique contribution will be examined alongside other interventions in couples therapy.     

The cultural responsibility of dance movement therapy: philosophical considerations

This paper examines the cultural situation and special responsibility of dance movement therapy, delineating certain philosophical and cultural-theoretical interpretations of the ‘corporeal turn’ and ‘therapeutic turn’ of contemporary culture. It aims to show how dance movement therapy’s theoretical horizon is inseparable from the body-mind integration of contemporary philosophies, and how corporeal turn is present in consumer culture, including some of its destructive forms of idealisation and malign regression. The question of how DMT is able to turn malignant regression to the body into benign regression is addressed, and an analysis of the correlating postmodern idea of resilience is offered. Finally, DMT groups are interpreted as social microcosms, and the way Hungarian psychodynamic movement and dance therapists apply their group therapeutic method for the development of democratic culture in the Civil Group Project is described.     

Dance therapy as form of communication activating psychotherapy for schizophrenic patients

This paper describes a method of dance therapy for the treatment of schizophrenic patients, based on a methodology from outside Russia and adapted to the conditions of Russia. Aims, purposes, and targets of dance therapy are considered as applied to the rehabilitation treatment of schizophrenic patients. The structure of the entire course of dance therapy consisting of 10 sessions is described, with 260 patients having been subjected to the course. Certain clinical cases of non-verbal communication development dynamics in the process of dance therapy are considered. Dance therapy is shown to be a form of communication activating psychotherapy treatment of schizophrenic patients. This therapy was developed and applied by the author of this paper.     

The dance/movement therapy group in a psychiatric outpatient clinic: explorations in body image and interaction

The clinical experiences gained in the practice of dance/movement therapy group at the Psychiatric Clinic of Tampere are discussed. The clinical work was built on the tradition of DMT and it has been informed by the practice of mindfulness and the recent findings in interpersonal neurobiology. The experiences of the bodily, true self are dominantly processed in right hemisphere of the brain. Neurobiology also informs us that the right hemisphere is essentially involved in emotional processes, nonverbal communications, attachment, subjectivity and intersubjectivity, in empathy, in the processing of non-conscious self images, threat detection, bodily-based stress regulation and survival. Intersubjective relationships are essentially dependent upon the information processing in the right hemisphere. The quality of interpersonal interactions and relationships is influenced by nonverbal, kinesthetic behaviour and the sensitivity to it. DMT work, promoting movement experiences, internal attunement and enhancing the body-self, allows a creative method to explore and integrate the contents of the right hemisphere.     

Psychodynamic Movement and Dance Therapy (PMDT) in Hungary

The emergence of dance therapy in Hungary has been a long and organic process from the 1980s onwards. In those years, psychiatrist and psychotherapist Márta Merényi developed Psychodynamic Movement and Dance Therapy (PMDT), a psychoanalytically oriented psychotherapeutic method, based on the body-mind work, the movement improvisation and the psychodynamic working through of movement experiences and relations in the group. This article offers insight into the Hungarian PMDT: its history, theoretical roots, therapeutic practice, applications, training and organisation, with an outline of the special characteristics of body-mind work, the interpersonal dynamics, leader instructions, and the creative movement and verbalism in PMDT.     

SYNERGY OF VERBAL AND NON-VERBAL THERAPIES IN THE TREATMENT OF MOTHER-INFANT RELATIONSHIPS

ABSTRACT The patient in the treatment of troubled mother-infant relationships is understood to be the lived relationship between mother and infant with the infant being an active participant in the relationship. As the infant is communicating in a non-verbal mode, a treatment medium is used that allows for both the active non-verbal contribution of the infant and the contribution of the mother, thus enabling both to work as their own therapists. Two different types of treatment modalities were combined: a psychoanalytically informed individual psychotherapy of mother and baby and a non-verbal approach of mother-infant dance therapy groups. An introductory overview of dance therapy specific to mother and infant is included as well as one case vignette and one case study. That it was the mother-infant dyad's physically meaningful experiences in the dance therapy group which acted as a catalyst for change became evident. The verbal treatment modality, on the other hand, was the essential understanding, metabolizing and containing space that sustained and consolidated these changes.     

Kinaesthetic narratives: Interpretations for children's dance movement therapy process

The present case study was aimed at producing research-based information on developmental dance movement therapy (DMT) in Finland. The hypothesis was that DMT enables non-verbal and verbal expression in children at risk of social displacement and long-term learning disabilities. A dance movement therapist and a preschool teacher co-led a year long, weekly DMT group for six preschool children of whom five had recently immigrated to Finland. The theory and practical methods were founded in DMT, attachment theory and solution focused therapy. The sessions used creative movement, movement observation, kinesthetic attunement and mirroring. The evaluation of the group process was based on participant observation, body memory and children's drawings. Bodily dialogue and supportive holding became integral parts of each session. The themes observed in children's drawings suggested developmental changes and externalisation of emotional experiences. The conclusion was that DMT supported the development of group dynamics and movement as a form of interaction.     

Traversing distance and proximity: the integration of psychodrama and dance movement therapy techniques in supervision

This article explores the potential for intermodal methods in person-centred supervision, focusing on the application of techniques from dance movement therapy (DMT) and psychodrama. The article proposes how specific structures combining psychodrama and DMT allow the supervisee to negotiate between proximity and distance, offering ways to hone in, step out or create alternative perspectives. Somatic congruence is introduced as a person-centred principle that enables the supervisor to understand and/or share somatic reactions in response to the supervisee’s material or the supervisor’s own personal process. Embodying roles and projective techniques are illustrated in the article through examples from the author’s supervisory DMT practice, demonstrating how these interventions may help symbolically crystallise supervisory issues. Caveats to these interventions and cautions to practitioners are presented, contributing to critical analyses of cross-disciplinary work. The article presents a constructive view towards future research and professional development on intermodal, creative supervisory practice.     

Body identity development: definitions and discussions

As the fields of body psychotherapy and dance/movement therapy mature, they tend to create their own theoretical models. This article articulates a theory of body identity that may provide conceptual resources for these fields, both theoretically and clinically. The historical and developmental roots of body identity are discussed and contextualised, both socioculturally and psychologically. Body identity development is mapped onto a current developmental theory called narrative identity, resulting in a more inclusive discourse of multiple selves and non-conforming identities. The concept of body narrative is introduced, and is seen as the mechanism for the development of body identity. Clinical implications are discussed, though further work is needed to ‘flesh out’ how body identity is navigated in body-centred psychotherapies.     

Dance movement therapy and developmental trauma: dissociation and enactment in a clinical case study

This article highlights how body language and non-verbal communication are key elements for the treatment of patients who have suffered from developmental traumas. Contributions from authors from a range of disciplines help the writer to compare the relationship infant-caregiver with the relationship patient-therapist, focusing on common rhythms, attunement, breathing and regulation of affects. The writer investigates how a prolonged lack of attunement from the primary caregiver can have traumatic effects for the child. A clinical case study demonstrates that, through the awarness of his/her own body as 'the instrument', the dance movement therapist can stimulate unconscious implicit body communication and create a sort of vessel where enactments that arise from the therapeutic process can find expression in creative and unexpected ways, as in dreams. This process helps the patient to reintegrate the dissociated aspects of his/herself and can generate significant changes for those involved in the therapeutic process.     

Somatic soulmates

The author compares and contrasts a method of body-oriented psychotherapy, the Rubenfeld Synergy® method (RSM), with a method of dance/movement therapy, Authentic Movement (AM). She examines parallels in the development of authentic movement and body psychotherapy and discusses similarities in theory and practice. She makes a case for integration of dance/movement therapy and body-psychotherapy under the umbrella of somatic therapies. She uses her personal history, Ilana Rubenfeld's history, and case examples to illustrate her points.     

Healing through the martial way: Incorporating karate training into counselling and psychotherapy

This research paper describes lived experiences in dance therapeutic processes in the case of a woman called Asta. Rather than claiming results from therapeutic processes, the paper enlightens change processes through narratives about both Asta's bodily movement expressions and inner experiences. The paper focuses furthermore on illustrating the possibilities of using body language, movement and an energetic approach to therapy in Asta's case with the dance therapy form Dansergia. Asta moves through a shell of anxiety and into the dance of a gypsy, from an inner experienced black ring and hedgehog to a woman accepting difficult experiences in the past and new possibilities in the present. Asta's processes are analysed and interpreted in an energy-based theoretical framework, and are then reflected upon in terms of impact possibilities in a broader dance therapeutic and research oriented context.     

Embodied attunement: a dance/movement therapy approach to working with couples

ABSTRACT

Attachment theory is well-recognised for understanding and treating adult love relationships. Neuroscientific research highlights the implicit process of attachment and the unconscious, nonverbal, bodily-based, and affect-regulating interactions of the right brain hemispheres in attachment development. Effective couple therapy ought to consider the implicit processes between infants and caregivers as a model to develop secure attachment in romantic partners, which makes dance/movement therapy (D/MT) a valuable treatment modality. Mirroring is a staple D/MT intervention that involves imitation of a client’s movement by the therapist to enhance attunement and empathy. In this paper, the author explores the overlap between attachment theory, neuroscience, dance/movement therapy, and couple therapy. A theoretical model is proposed for the use of mirroring with couples to foster secure attachment by means of attunement on a bodily-based level. Future research is suggested in order to measure the effectiveness of mirroring on couples’ attachment.     

Belly dance and its links to body psychotherapy

This paper describes the therapeutic use of belly dance therapy (BDT) for women, context and process, on its own and in relation to body psychotherapy and the Chakra system. It gives a brief history of belly dance, references the author’s personal journey and describes a case study. It illustrates how BDT can empower women to serve themselves in their pleasure and pain by awakening the dissociated, traumatised parts of the body and non-verbal body memories through sensing and feeling the body and verbally articulating this.