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Date Permissions Signed

5-19-2021

Date of Award

Spring 2021

Document Type

Masters Thesis

Department or Program Affiliation

Kinesiology, Sport and Exercise Psychology

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Health and Human Development

First Advisor

Keeler, Linda

Second Advisor

Arthur-Cameselle, Jessyca

Third Advisor

Kuntz, Pam

Abstract

Approximately 95% of dancers suffer from musculoskeletal pain, and rates of musculoskeletal injury in professional dancers range between 20% to 84% (Hincapié et al., 2008). In addition to the mechanical disturbances that injuries have on physical functioning, athletic injuries often trigger psychological and emotional distress (Anderson et al., 2004; Wiese-Bjornstal et al., 1998). Sport athletes have reported emotions including frustration, depression, fear, and anger post-injury, among other psychological responses (Johnston & Carroll, 1998; Macchi & Crossman, 1996; Tracey, 2003). Dancers, like sport athletes, face inherent risks for injury due to the artistry and physicality of dancing (Hincapié et al., 2008), yet there is limited research on the psychological responses of dance-related injuries, particularly within modern dancers (Thomas & Tarr, 2009). Thus, the purpose of the present study was to qualitatively explore the post-injury psychological experiences of modern dancers. Participants included eight adult modern dancers (7 women, 1 man; Mage = 30.5 years; 75% White) who had suffered a serious injury (≥ 6 weeks recovery time) within the past five years. Data was collected via semi-structured interviews, and all interviews were transcribed verbatim and coded line-by-line through an inductive analysis process. All open codes were sorted into 24 themes. Final themes were organized into seven higher order categories: emotional reactions, behavioral responses, realizations, external factors, loss, acceptance, and other experiences. The present study provides a base of research on the complexity of dance injury experiences and can be used as a guide to aid practitioners to support modern dancers more effectively.

Type

Text

Keywords

modern dancers, stress-related growth, social support, surgery, athletic injury, emotional responses, qualitative

Publisher

Western Washington University

OCLC Number

1252215675

Subject – LCSH

Dancing injuries--Psychological aspects; Dancers--Interviews

Format

application/pdf

Genre/Form

masters theses

Language

English

Rights

Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.

Rights Statement

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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