Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
-
- Social and Behavioral Sciences (14)
- Mental and Social Health (11)
- Psychology (9)
- Arts and Humanities (8)
- Art Therapy (6)
-
- Movement and Mind-Body Therapies (6)
- Rehabilitation and Therapy (6)
- Counseling (4)
- Developmental Psychology (4)
- Music (4)
- Music Therapy (4)
- Other Mental and Social Health (4)
- Theatre and Performance Studies (4)
- Child Psychology (3)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (3)
- Community Health (2)
- Dance (2)
- Disability Studies (2)
- Education (2)
- International and Area Studies (2)
- Other Psychology (2)
- Other Theatre and Performance Studies (2)
- Social Justice (2)
- Somatic Psychology (2)
- Accessibility (1)
- Anthropology (1)
- Applied Behavior Analysis (1)
- Keyword
-
- Expressive arts therapy (7)
- Dance/movement therapy (6)
- Embodiment (3)
- Community engagement (2)
- Resilience (2)
-
- Trauma (2)
- Addiction (1)
- Asian American (1)
- Autism (1)
- Autonomic dysfunction (1)
- Balseros (1)
- Bereavement (1)
- Biopsychosocial model (1)
- Burnout (1)
- Caregiver (1)
- Childhood trauma (1)
- Chronic illness (1)
- Clay (1)
- Co-regulation (1)
- Cognitively Healthy (1)
- Collaborative arts (1)
- Community healing practices (1)
- Community-based (1)
- Coping skills (1)
- Creative arts therapy (1)
- Cuban exiles (1)
- Cuban history and traditions (1)
- Cuban immigration (1)
- Cultural dance (1)
- Cultural pride (1)
Articles 1 - 16 of 16
Full-Text Articles in Dance Movement Therapy
Thoughts From The Pit: Can Raving Change The World? A Literature Review Exploring Rave Culture As Expressive Arts Healing, Marissa Rose Renella
Thoughts From The Pit: Can Raving Change The World? A Literature Review Exploring Rave Culture As Expressive Arts Healing, Marissa Rose Renella
Expressive Therapies Theses
This literature review examines the structural and philosophical commonalities between expressive arts therapy (EXA) and rave culture. Drawing on scholarship from anthropology, cultural studies, health sciences, transpersonal psychology, neuroscience, and expressive arts therapy, this review identifies five core principles shared between the two fields: transformational experiences, multimodality, entrainment and flow, containment and ritual, and community and social action values. Across each principle, the literature reveals not surface-level similarity but deep convergence — two fields that have, independently and through different lineages, arrived at the same understanding of what human beings need in order to heal, grow, and connect. To the …
Opening Space For Joy: Play As A Pathway In Dance/Movement Therapy With Adults In Addiction Recovery, Brittany M. Walsh
Opening Space For Joy: Play As A Pathway In Dance/Movement Therapy With Adults In Addiction Recovery, Brittany M. Walsh
Expressive Therapies Theses
This literature review examines the cultivation of joy through play in dance/movement therapy (DMT) for adults in addiction treatment. Substance use disorders (SUDs) and addictive behaviors are complex, multifaceted conditions influenced by biological, psychological, social, and systemic factors; however, treatment approaches often prioritize symptom reduction and traditional talk-based models. Although necessary, these approaches often fail to honor the whole person, and can inadvertently reinforce shame, stigma, isolation, and dehumanization. Drawing on trauma-informed, neurobiological, relational, and decolonizing frameworks, this review positions joy as a fundamental aspect of human experience and an affirmation of dignity. Playful processes in DMT have the potential …
From Worry To Invention: Developing The Lunch Bunch As A Multimodal Expressive Arts Model For Regulation, Collaboration, And Peer Connection In Elementary Schools, Pascale Lauren Mimran-Ugbabe
From Worry To Invention: Developing The Lunch Bunch As A Multimodal Expressive Arts Model For Regulation, Collaboration, And Peer Connection In Elementary Schools, Pascale Lauren Mimran-Ugbabe
Expressive Therapies Theses
This thesis documents the development of the Multimodal Expressive Arts Lunch Bunch, a small group intervention for elementary students delivered during the school lunch period at a public elementary school in Boston, Massachusetts. Grounded in multimodal expressive arts therapy, intermodal transfer theory, polyvagal-informed co-regulation, and principles of externalization, the intervention was designed as a low-barrier creative support group accessible regardless of diagnosis, referral status, or family pursuit of clinical services. Two cohorts of teacher-nominated students, one group of fourth-grade girls and one mixed-gender third-grade group, participated in a sequenced arc moving from worry externalization through collaborative invention, prototype construction, and …
Dropping Into The Expressive Art Therapy: A Community Engagement Arts Based Project, Sydney C. Smith, Meg Chang
Dropping Into The Expressive Art Therapy: A Community Engagement Arts Based Project, Sydney C. Smith, Meg Chang
Expressive Therapies Theses
This community engagement capstone explores how expressive arts practices (EXAP) may complement surf-based programming by supporting reflection, empathy, and meaning-making among participants. Research has demonstrated that surf therapy can promote emotional well-being, resilience, and social connection through embodied engagement with the ocean and supportive community environments. Integrating expressive arts practices within surf-based programs may extend these benefits by providing opportunities for reflection, creative expression, and interpersonal exchange. Grounded in expressive arts therapy (EXAT) theory and arts-based research (ABR) paradigms, this project examines how creative expression can support relational and emotional experiences within surf therapy settings. Using an arts-informed community engagement …
Alive Old-Time Radio Play: Performance-Based Drama Therapy With Cognitively Healthy Older Adults, Aaron T. Dore
Alive Old-Time Radio Play: Performance-Based Drama Therapy With Cognitively Healthy Older Adults, Aaron T. Dore
Expressive Therapies Theses
The live radio play format is uniquely positioned to offer social benefits for older adults when explored through a performance-based drama therapeutic lens. Though firsthand familiarity with old-time radio is not a prerequisite for meaningful participation in a group styled after this bygone era of storytelling, the format naturally supports accessibility needs common among the older adult population. The minimal blocking requirements, script-in-hand approach, and adaptable format make it especially accommodating to a wide range of skill levels and areas of interest. Research into therapeutic interventions for older adults tends to rely on reminiscence and life review approaches with an …
"With A Heavy Heart": A Literature Review Exploring The Embodiment Of Grief And Its Implications For Grief Processing, Mollie Pratt
"With A Heavy Heart": A Literature Review Exploring The Embodiment Of Grief And Its Implications For Grief Processing, Mollie Pratt
Expressive Therapies Theses
Though a plethora of literature has explored the connection between bereavement and the body, much of that research has focused on bereavement’s effects on physical health. Little research has been conducted to explore bereaved individuals’ embodiment of their grief, and even less has investigated the implications of those embodied sensations on the possible use of embodiment in interventions for grief processing. This literature review aimed to gain a better understanding of how grief is felt by and expressed through the body. The literature was synthesized, and common embodied themes reported by bereaved individuals were identified. Additionally, a discussion of possible …
Reimagining “Embodiment” In Dance/Movement Therapy: Unraveling The Roots Of Oppression In Our Bodies And Our Practice—A Literature Review, Holly A. Herzfeld
Reimagining “Embodiment” In Dance/Movement Therapy: Unraveling The Roots Of Oppression In Our Bodies And Our Practice—A Literature Review, Holly A. Herzfeld
Expressive Therapies Theses
This thesis explores the intertwined roots of power, privilege, and oppression embedded in the term “embodiment” within Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT) and how it is applied in the profession via a review of the literature. By locating the body as the vessel of experience, including trauma and oppression, this work challenges the dominant understanding of embodiment as solely about connectedness and groundedness, questioning why connection to the body is so often equated with psychological health. While the mind has been historically privileged over the body, DMT’s emphasis on bodily experience presents a unique opportunity to decolonize our dominant understanding of embodiment. …
Dance/Movement Therapy Interventions That Can Address And Decrease Impacts Of Developmental Prosopagnosia: A Literature Review, Caitlin Rivenbark
Dance/Movement Therapy Interventions That Can Address And Decrease Impacts Of Developmental Prosopagnosia: A Literature Review, Caitlin Rivenbark
Expressive Therapies Theses
This literature review explores dance/movement therapy (DMT) as a treatment modality for developmental prosopagnosia (DP) or face blindness. Research on DP causes and assessments are limited, as well as research on treatments and supportive management. In order to conceptualize how DMT might support people with DP, this paper focuses on mitigating the impacts of having the condition by exploring treatments for conditions with similar impacts including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and social anxiety disorder (SAD). The interventions included were pharmacotherapy, behavioral contingencies, mainstream therapies, and alternative therapies including DMT and drama therapy (DT). The various …
A Proposal For The Theoretical Integration Of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy And Dance/Movement Therapy, Sarah Crain
A Proposal For The Theoretical Integration Of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy And Dance/Movement Therapy, Sarah Crain
Expressive Therapies Theses
A recognized integration of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and dance/movement therapy (DMT) has not been developed because the concept currently lacks a strong philosophical and theoretical background. Observations from adjacent integrative expressive therapies and clinical practice provide encouragement that these models may provide a unique contribution to the field of psychotherapy. CBT would support the field of DMT toward better establishing an evidence-based theoretical background and framework. It is proposed that a well-supported approach to CBT and DMT should be built from a theoretical integration that upholds integrity of both models while identifying connective philosophical roots. This literature review initiates …
"La Vida Es Un Carnaval": An Exploration Of Cuban Identity And Nostalgia Through Dance/Movement Therapy - A Community Engagement Project, Maria Fernanda Mendez Mendoza
"La Vida Es Un Carnaval": An Exploration Of Cuban Identity And Nostalgia Through Dance/Movement Therapy - A Community Engagement Project, Maria Fernanda Mendez Mendoza
Expressive Therapies Theses
“La Vida Es Un Carnaval” is a community engagement project and thesis that explores how identity and nostalgic resilience show up through dance/movement therapy with Cuban immigrants living in the United States, specifically Massachusetts. This project brought together six Cuban-born participants, ages 26 to 67, each with their own unique migration stories; from the Rafter Balsero Crisis of 1994, to the “Wet-Foot/Dry-Foot” policy, and family reunification. Through a mix of in-person and online sessions, participants explored their experiences using intermodal activities including dance/movement therapy techniques, conversation, journaling, artwork, and music. Themes of cultural pride, “Cubanía” – Cuban-ness, culture shock, and …
To Bear Witness: Analyzing Dmt As An Effective Trauma-Informed Approach For Treating Youth & Adolescents: A Critical Review Of The Literature, Jade Dennis
Expressive Therapies Theses
This literature review proposes dance/movement therapy (DMT) as a trauma-informed intervention for children and adolescents who have experienced psychological, emotional, or physical trauma. The project, inspired by internship experiences with young trauma survivors, explores the ways in which trauma manifests in the body, indicating that DMT may offer effective pathways toward healing. Many children exposed to potentially traumatic events exhibit emotional dysregulation, insecure attachment patterns, and behavioral or somatic symptoms that are not easily addressed through traditional talk therapy. As a body-based expressive arts modality, DMT engages the sensory, emotional, and relational aspects of trauma by supporting nonverbal expression, self-regulation, …
Therapeutic Qualities And Applications Of Clay In Expressive Arts Therapy: A Literature Review, Julia Caruso
Therapeutic Qualities And Applications Of Clay In Expressive Arts Therapy: A Literature Review, Julia Caruso
Expressive Therapies Theses
This literature review investigates the therapeutic qualities and clinical applications of clay within the framework of expressive arts therapy (ExAT), with particular focus on sensorimotor, somatic, and developmental interventions. Drawing upon the expressive therapies continuum (ETC), this review synthesizes emerging research highlighting clay's kinesthetic and tactile properties as key mechanisms for facilitating emotional expression, accessing unconscious material, and promoting psychological resilience. Evidence is presented for specialized therapeutic modalities such as clay art therapy (CAT) and Clay Field Work, which engage the body-mind connection to support trauma integration and emotion regulation. Findings demonstrate that clay's inherent adaptability and sensory richness allow …
Using Expressive Arts Therapy With Autistic Children To Help Regulate And Build Coping Skills: A Literature Review, Swara Swaminathan
Using Expressive Arts Therapy With Autistic Children To Help Regulate And Build Coping Skills: A Literature Review, Swara Swaminathan
Expressive Therapies Theses
This literature review is about whether we can use Expressive Arts Therapy with autistic children to regulate and build coping skills. The author could not find articles that covers the entire topic, but she split the topic in terms of autism in India and various application of Expressive Arts Therapy globally. She was able to find Expressive Arts Therapy or Creative Arts Therapy was helpful to autistic children, or children with trauma. She could also notice the stigma of autism in India in some of the articles.
Dance/Movement Therapy As A Potential Complimentary Treatment For Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome: A Literature Review, Ashley H. Marsden
Dance/Movement Therapy As A Potential Complimentary Treatment For Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome: A Literature Review, Ashley H. Marsden
Expressive Therapies Theses
Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) is a debilitating condition predominantly affecting younger individuals, marked by extreme heart rate fluctuations, fatigue, and cognitive disturbances. This literature review explores the multifaceted nature of POTS, emphasizing the need for effective management strategies that incorporate both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. It highlights the promising role of Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT) as a complementary treatment, which fosters emotional expression and enhances physical well-being. By synthesizing current research on POTS, pharmacological options, and innovative non-pharmacological therapies like DMT, this review advocates for a holistic approach to POTS management that recognizes the complexities of the disorder and addresses …
Communing With Lions: A Critical Literature Review Exploring Pan-Asian Lion Dance Traditions Through The Lens Of Expressive Arts Therapy, Sarah T. Ngo
Expressive Therapies Theses
Lion dancing is a cultural art form practiced in numerous Asian and Asian diasporic cultures across the world. While the dance has been studied both in a historical and ethnographic manner, little research exists on its therapeutic benefits. This capstone thesis explores lion dancing through the lens of the expressive arts therapies to uncover the therapeutic factors underlying the practice. It applies the Chadian dance/movement therapy framework as well as various expressive arts therapy frameworks to the lion dance. The literature review indicates that lion dancing has the potential to be therapeutic in a number of ways, which include: 1) …
Who Cares For The Caregivers? How Dance And Movement Can Benefit Caregiving Parents Of Children With Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities: A Literature Review, Haley E. Gilbert
Who Cares For The Caregivers? How Dance And Movement Can Benefit Caregiving Parents Of Children With Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities: A Literature Review, Haley E. Gilbert
Expressive Therapies Theses
Caregiver parents of people with intellectual/developmental disabilities (IDD) are not able to care for themselves as often as they should be able to for their own mental and physical wellness due to their caregiving responsibilities that often carry into adulthood. These can lead to anxiety, depression, grief, and dysregulation for the parent. Dance and movement practices have been found to relieve the symptoms of these experiences while helping the child with IDD and the parent connect more, building stronger relationships. This thesis will include a comprehensive literature review of body-based theories such as the Polyvagal Theory (Polyvagal Institute, 2025), Bowlby’s …