Increasingly, creative activities are being applied in psychotherapeutic situations. Movement (dance) therapy is a creative modality which has been applied in the treatment of psychiatric inpatients.
The abstract presents the effects of a 20 dance session movement training program, which combines creative dance techniques with a focus on the specific psychophysical needs of each client. A movement group of 12 forensic patients was compared with the effects of a 20 session problem solving discussion group. Dependent variables were body awareness, self concept, and antisocial behavior which are considered below average in forensic patients.
The movement training program included isolation and coordination of body parts, various exercise games, exploration of the effort factors space, time, force and flow, and improvisations on themes that are psychophysically therapeutic.
The discussion group included exercises involving problem identification and personal treatment planning awareness. Three pretreatment and post-treatment measures were used. Significant differences were shown between experimental Ss on the self-concept measure. Results from the study show that the Movement Training group is worth trying again.
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