Date of Award

2013

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Graham, Steven

Keywords

Body Image, Stress, Dance, Therapy, Belly Dance

Area of Concentration

Psychology

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to measure and compare body image and perceived stress between belly dancers and dancers of other styles. Participants were 177 dancers (9 male, 168 female; 113 belly dancers, 64 dancers of other styles) between the ages of 18 and 75 years. Participants responded to a survey measuring body image satisfaction/dissatisfaction and levels of perceived stress. Belly dancers were older and weighed more than other dancers, but had similar levels of body image satisfaction and perceived stress. It was suggested that, because other dance forms are already considered to be physically and psychologically beneficial (Rudolph & Kim, 1996; West et al., 2004), belly dance could also be considered potentially psychologically beneficial. With further research, it is possible that movement modalities and techniques found in belly dance can be effectively worked into dance movement therapy models and/or be recommended as a compliment to psychotherapy.

Rights

The author has granted New College of Florida the nonexclusive right to archive, make accessible, and distribute for educational purposes this work in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The copyright of this work remains with the author.

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