DOCSLIB.ORG

Comparisons in Physical Characteristic of Professional Ballet

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Comparisons in Physical Characteristic of Professional Ballet COMPARISONS IN PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTIC OF PROFESSIONAL BALLET AND COLLEGIATE DANCERS by Valerie Williams Bachelor of Science, Slippery Rock University, 2005 Doctor of Physical Therapy, Slippery Rock University, 2008 Master of Science, University of Pittsburgh, 2010 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Pittsburgh 2016 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH SCHOOL OF HEALTH AND REHABILITATION SCIENCES This dissertation was presented by Valerie Williams It was defended on April 7, 2016 and approved by Christopher Connaboy, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Sports Medicine and Nutrition Takashi Nagai, PhD, CSCS, Assistant Professor, Department of Sports Medicine and Nutrition Bradley Nindl, PhD, FACSM, Professor, Department of Sports Medicine and Nutrition Timothy Sell, PhD, PT, Associate Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Duke University Dissertation Advisor: Mita Lovalekar, MBBS, PhD, MPH, Assistant Professor, Department of Sports Medicine and Nutrition ii Copyright © by Valerie Williams 2016 iii COMPARISONS IN PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF PROFESSIONAL BALLET AND COLLEGIATE DANCERS Valerie Williams, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2016 Dancers are a group of athletes with unique physical and performance characteristics. Dance medicine and science is a growing field, as researchers and clinicians see the need for information specific to this population due to high injury rates. Comprehensive information on separate types of dancers, especially collegiate dancers, is unavailable. The purpose of this study was to describe and compare characteristics of professional ballet and collegiate dancers, as well as investigate the relationships among these characteristics. The first portion of the study investigates differences in body composition, lower extremity and trunk muscular strength, dynamic postural stability, and landing kinematics of professional ballet dancers and collegiate dance majors. The second portion of the study determines the ability of strength to predict dynamic postural stability and kinematic variables that are potential risk factors for injury including, knee valgus, ankle inversion, and foot pronation. Fifty nine dancers participated in the study (30 professional ballet and 29 collegiate). Equal proportions of males and females were in each group. Dancers completed an injury history questionnaire, followed by assessments of body composition, dynamic postural stability, kinematics during a dance jump task, and isokinetic and isometric muscular strength. Results demonstrate that professional dancers are significantly stronger than collegiate dancers for most muscle groups tested. The study found no significant differences in dynamic iv postural stability, and minimal differences in kinematics. No differences were found in self- reported injury histories, except that a greater proportion of professional dancers reported injuries to the ankle, and foot and toe regions. Regression analyses revealed that gender and trunk rotation strength predicted dynamic postural stability. Gender and knee flexion strength predicted maximum knee valgus angle. Gender and knee extension strength predicted ankle inversion angle at initial contact and, gender and knee flexion strength predicted maximum inversion angle. No significant predictors of foot pronation angle were found. This study provides a comprehensive assessment of professional ballet and collegiate dancers and provides insight into the relationships among their characteristics and abilities. Further research should investigate relationships in each gender separately, as well as study additional variables that explain the relationship between strength and biomechanics. v TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE ................................................................................................................................. XIX 1.0 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 1 1.1 INJURY EPIDEMIOLOGY IN DANCERS ..................................................... 2 1.2 PHYSICAL AND NEUROMUSCULAR CHARACTERISTICS OF DANCERS ............................................................................................................................. 4 1.2.1 Muscular Strength ........................................................................................... 4 1.2.2 Postural Stability ............................................................................................. 6 1.2.3 Biomechanics .................................................................................................... 9 1.3 COMPARISIONS BETWEEN PROFESSIONAL AND COLLEGIATE DANCERS ........................................................................................................................... 11 1.4 DEFINITION OF THE PROBLEM ................................................................ 12 1.5 PURPOSE ........................................................................................................... 13 1.6 SPECIFIC AIMS AND HYPOTHESES ......................................................... 13 1.7 STUDY SIGNIFICANCE ................................................................................. 16 2.0 REVIEW OF LITERATURE ................................................................................... 17 2.1 BACKGROUND ON DANCE TRAINING AND PERFORMANCE .......... 17 2.1.1 Basic Dance Technique Overview ................................................................ 17 vi 2.1.2 Professional Dance ......................................................................................... 19 2.1.3 Collegiate Dance ............................................................................................ 20 2.2 INJURY EPIDEMIOLOGY IN DANCERS ................................................... 21 2.2.1 Injury Incidence ............................................................................................. 21 2.2.2 Injury Location and Type ............................................................................. 24 2.3 RISK FACTORS FOR INJURY IN DANCERS ............................................ 26 2.3.1 History of Injury ............................................................................................ 27 2.3.2 Factors Related to Fatigue, Dance Exposure, and Dance Training .......... 29 2.3.3 Metabolic Considerations ............................................................................. 33 2.4 PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF DANCERS ...................................... 35 2.4.1 Body Composition.......................................................................................... 36 2.4.2 Aerobic and Anaerobic Capacity ................................................................. 37 2.4.3 Joint Range of Motion and Muscular Flexibility ........................................ 38 2.5 NEUROMSCULAR CHARACTERISTICS OF DANCERS ........................ 40 2.5.1 Muscular Strength ......................................................................................... 40 2.5.2 Postural Stability ........................................................................................... 49 2.5.3 Biomechanics .................................................................................................. 53 2.6 METHODOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS ................................................ 60 2.6.1 Body Composition.......................................................................................... 60 2.6.2 Muscular Strength ......................................................................................... 63 2.6.2.1 Hand Held Dynamometry .................................................................. 63 2.6.2.2 Isokinetic Dynamometry .................................................................... 64 2.6.3 Dynamic Postural Stability ........................................................................... 65 vii 2.6.4 Biomechanics .................................................................................................. 67 3.0 METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................... 70 3.1 EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN ............................................................................ 70 3.2 SUBJECT RECRUITMENT ............................................................................ 70 3.3 SUBJECT CHARACTERISTICS ................................................................... 71 3.3.1 Inclusion Criteria ........................................................................................... 71 3.3.2 Exclusion Criteria .......................................................................................... 71 3.4 POWER ANALYSIS ......................................................................................... 72 3.5 INSTRUMENTATION ..................................................................................... 73 3.5.1 Bod Pod Body Composition .......................................................................... 73 3.5.2 Hand Held Dynamometry ............................................................................. 73 3.5.3 Isokinetic Dynamometry ............................................................................... 74 3.5.4 Dynamic Postural stability ............................................................................ 75 3.5.5 Biomechanics .................................................................................................
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Is a Genre of Dance Performance That Developed During the Mid-Twentieth
    Contemporary Dance Dance 3-4 -Is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century - Has grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in the U.S. and Europe. -Although originally informed by and borrowing from classical, modern, and jazz styles, it has since come to incorporate elements from many styles of dance. Due to its technical similarities, it is often perceived to be closely related to modern dance, ballet, and other classical concert dance styles. -It also employs contract-release, floor work, fall and recovery, and improvisation characteristics of modern dance. -Involves exploration of unpredictable changes in rhythm, speed, and direction. -Sometimes incorporates elements of non-western dance cultures, such as elements from African dance including bent knees, or movements from the Japanese contemporary dance, Butoh. -Contemporary dance draws on both classical ballet and modern dance -Merce Cunningham is considered to be the first choreographer to "develop an independent attitude towards modern dance" and defy the ideas that were established by it. -Cunningham formed the Merce Cunningham Dance Company in 1953 and went on to create more than one hundred and fifty works for the company, many of which have been performed internationally by ballet and modern dance companies. -There is usually a choreographer who makes the creative decisions and decides whether the piece is an abstract or a narrative one. -Choreography is determined based on its relation to the music or sounds that is danced to. .
    [Show full text]
  • It Takes Two by Carolyn Merritt
    Photo: Keira Heu-Jwyn Chang It Takes Two by Carolyn Merritt What will become of us if we can’t learn to see and be with others? Can we see ourselves as others do, in order to navigate the path toward greater communication and understanding, without relinquishing our identity in the process? Together, Union Tanguera and Kate Weare Dance Company probe these questions in Sin Salida, their stunning cross-pollination of Argentine tango and contemporary dance recently presented at the Annenberg Center. Titled after Jean-Paul Sartre’s 1944 play No Exit (Huis clos in French), the production weaves together essential elements of each form with points of connection and tension, positing dance as a metaphorical map for human relations. Five chairs mark the upstage space and a single light hangs above a piano downstage left, evoking a tense audition. Film images, in negative, appear against the backdrop—a woman tending her hair at a vanity, a couple framed in a doorway, their essence muddied in the wash of black. Union Tanguera Co-Artistic Directors Claudia Codega and Esteban Moreno dance an elegant, salon-style tango that combines the outward focus and enlarged vocabulary of stage tango with the inward intention of the improvised, social Argentine form. They spin as if in balancé turns to the sounds of tango waltz, heads and focus trailing behind. Moreno lifts Codega to fan her legs wide in a split en l’air. Their costuming—stiletto heels and a tight red, knee-length dress slit to the hip for Codega, and dark dress shirt and slacks for Moreno—reference “traditional” tango aesthetics and gender dynamics.
    [Show full text]
  • Jacob's Pillow Presents Canada's Red Sky
    NATIONAL MEDAL OF ARTS | NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK ​ FOR IMAGES AND MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Nicole Tomasofsky, Public Relations & Communications Manager 413.243.9919 x132 [email protected] JACOB’S PILLOW PRESENTS CANADA’S RED SKY PERFORMANCE, AUGUST 7-11; CENTERPIECE OF WEEKLONG CELEBRATION OF INDIGENOUS DANCE AND CULTURE July 22, 2019 – (Becket, MA) Red Sky Performance makes their Doris Duke Theatre debut with the U.S. Premiere of Trace, August 7-11. Red Sky is a leading company of contemporary Indigenous performance in Canada and ​ ​ worldwide, led by Artistic Director Sandra Laronde. “Magnificent in the scope of its imagination” (Globe and ​ Mail), Trace is a highly kinetic contemporary dance work influenced by Anishinaabe sky and star stories, offering ​ ​ ​ a glimpse into Indigenous origins. The U.S. premiere of Trace is the centerpiece of The Land On Which We ​ ​ Dance, a landmark gathering of Indigenous dance and culture at Jacob’s Pillow, curated by Sandra Laronde in ​ association with Hawaiian dancer/choreographer Christopher K. Morgan and Massachusetts-based Nipmuc Elder Larry Spotted Crow Mann. ​ “Jacob’s Pillow’s identity is entwined with the beauty and majesty of our land and natural surroundings. It is important to welcome back to the Pillow the original inhabitants of this land with a landmark celebration that will not only assemble local elders and artists, but also a premiere company like Red Sky Performance, whose work acts as a vehicle for storytelling and transformation,” says Jacob’s Pillow Director Pamela Tatge. In an interview with the Smithsonian’s American Indian Magazine, Laronde says, “The idea of Trace came from ​ ​ ​ ​ the notion that all things are traceable and what we leave behind as humans, as a culture, as a nation, and as an individual is our legacy.” In creating the work, Laronde realized all traces have origins, and then began to question the origin of Indigenous people and more specifically, Anishinaabe people.
    [Show full text]
  • The Political Kiaesthetics of Contemporary Dance:—
    UC Berkeley UC Berkeley Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title The Political Kinesthetics of Contemporary Dance: Taiwan in Transnational Perspective Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5gg5d9cm Author Seetoo, Chia-Yi Publication Date 2013 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California The Political Kinesthetics of Contemporary Dance: Taiwan in Transnational Perspective By Chia-Yi Seetoo A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Performance Studies in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Miryam Sas, Chair Professor Catherine Cole Professor Sophie Volpp Professor Andrew F. Jones Spring 2013 Copyright 2013 Chia-Yi Seetoo All Rights Reserved Abstract The Political Kinesthetics of Contemporary Dance: Taiwan in Transnational Perspective By Chia-Yi Seetoo University of California, Berkeley Doctor of Philosophy in Performance Studies Professor Miryam Sas, Chair This dissertation considers dance practices emerging out of post-1980s conditions in Taiwan to theorize how contemporary dance negotiates temporality as a political kinesthetic performance. The dissertation attends to the ways dance kinesthetically responds to and mediates the flows of time, cultural identity, and social and political forces in its transnational movement. Dances negotiate disjunctures in the temporality of modernization as locally experienced and their global geotemporal mapping. The movement of performers and works pushes this simultaneous negotiation to the surface, as the aesthetics of the performances registers the complexity of the forces they are grappling with and their strategies of response. By calling these strategies “political kinesthetic” performance, I wish to highlight how politics, aesthetics, and kinesthetics converge in dance, and to show how political and affective economies operate with and through fully sensate, efforted, laboring bodies.
    [Show full text]
  • Process of Improvisational Contemporary Dance
    Process of Improvisational Contemporary Dance Yuko Nakano ([email protected]) Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies, University of Tokyo Tokyo 113-0033, Japan Takeshi Okada ([email protected]) Graduate School of Education & Interfaculty Initiative in Information studies, University of Tokyo Tokyo 113-0033, Japan Abstract process of improvisational dance contains the essence of artistic creation and expression. The purpose of this study is to investigate the process of improvisational contemporary dance. To achieve this goal, we Previous studies in the domain of dance have pointed out combine two types of methodology: analysis of data from the importance of improvisation in the creation of dance interviews with dancers and analysis of their dance works, and the importance of impromptu expressions performances. Our findings reveal that while dancing, in themselves (Fukumoto, 2007; 2009; Hosokawa, 2011; De order to create their movements, improvisational dancers Spain, 1997; Ribeiro & Fonseca, 2011; Soma & Hosokawa, interact with various stimuli that come from inside and 2007; Tsujimoto, 2010). Reviewing previous studies outside of themselves (for example, images and feelings that they entertain during their dancing, and the music, space and focused on how historically eminent dancers used audience of their dance performances). Through such improvisation to express themselves or create their dance interactions, dancers organize movements in their works, Tsujimoto (2010) emphasized the significance of performances extemporarily, using various expressive improvisation in dance. Tsujimoto (2010) also described an techniques (for example, changing speed or image anecdote that when dancing extemporarily, the dancer's intentionally and seeing themselves from the viewpoint of a body instantly responded to stimuli from dance partners, the third person).
    [Show full text]
  • A Study on the Gender Imbalance Among Professional Choreographers Working in the Fields of Classical Ballet and Contemporary Dance
    Where are the female choreographers? A study on the gender imbalance among professional choreographers working in the fields of classical ballet and contemporary dance. Jessica Teague August 2016 This Dissertation is submitted to City University as part of the requirements for the award of MA Culture, Policy and Management 1 Abstract The dissertation investigates the lack of women working as professional choreographers in both the UK and the wider international dance sector. Although dance as an art form within western cultures is often perceived as ‘the art of women,’ it is predominately men who are conceptualising the works and choreographing the movement. This study focuses on understanding the phenomenon that leads female choreographers to be less likely to produce works for leading dance companies and venues than their male counterparts. The research investigates the current scope of the gender imbalance in the professional choreographic field, the reasons for the imbalance and provides theories as to why the imbalance is more pronounced in the classical ballet sector compared to the contemporary dance field. The research draws together experiences and statistical evidence from two significant branches of the artistic process; the choreographers involved in creating dance and the Gatekeepers and organisations that commission them. Key issues surrounding the problem are identified and assessed through qualitative data drawn from interviews with nine professional female choreographers. A statistical analysis of the repertoire choices of 32 leading international dance companies quantifies and compares the severity of the gender imbalance at the highest professional level. The data indicates that the scope of the phenomenon affects not only the UK but also the majority of the Western world.
    [Show full text]
  • Michael Crotty
    Michael Crotty ______________________________________________________________________________ Current Position: Assistant Professor of Dance, Department of Speech, Theater and Dance, The University of Tampa Education MASTER OF FINE ARTS, MODERN DANCE, THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH- 2017 INTEGRATED MOVEMENT STUDIES, DIPLOMA - 2016 ROTTERDAMSE DANSAKADEMIE (NOW CODARTS), DIPLOMA - 2005 BACHELOR OF FINE ARTS, DANCE, THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, DEANS LIST- 2006 Teaching: The University of Tampa DEPARTMENT OF DANCE (2019-Present) • (DAN 242) Intermediate Modern Dance • (DAN 2011) Dance History • (DAN 200) Dance and World Cultures • (DAN 269) Improvisation Southern Utah University DEPARTMENT OF DANCE (2017- 2019) • (DANC 2150): Ballet Technique III • (DANC 1500): Jazz Dance I • (DANC 4150): Ballet Technique V • (DANC 3500): Dance History I • (DANC 4500 ): Dance History II • (DANC 3530): Dance Composition III • (DANC 3900): Creative Movement for Children • (DAN 3950): Methods in Performing Arts Education • (DANC 4900): Advanced Methods in Dance Education • (DANC 3530): Principles of Choreography • (DANC 2160 ): Modern III • (DANC 3180): Modern VI • (DANC 4300): Dance Ensemble • (DANC 4980): Student Teaching University of Utah DEPARTMENT OF MODERN DANCE (2014-2017) • (DANC 2311, 6111): Ballet Technique II • (DANC 1021): Contact Improvisation • (BALLE 4401): Kinesiology • (DANC123): Dance Composition for Non- Majors • (DANC 6210): Grad Dance Workshop • (DANC 1111): Movement Fundamentals • (DANC 6961) Dance and Special Education GUEST TEACHER (2014- PRESENT)
    [Show full text]
  • Brian Brooks Press Release for Review
    NATIONAL MEDAL OF ARTS | NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK FOR IMAGES AND MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Elise Linscott, Public Relations & Communications Coordinator [email protected] BRIAN BROOKS / MOVING COMPANY PRESENTS CLOSING DISTANCE AND THREE NEW WORKS AT JACOB’S PILLOW; CONTRA-TIEMPO PREMIERES FOR ONLINE AUDIENCES July 9, 2021 – (BECKET, Mass.) – Jacob’s Pillow presents Brian Brooks / Moving Company on the Henry J. Leir Stage and in a site-specific performance, utilizing augmented reality technology, from July 21-25. The company will perform Closing Distance, which premiered before the pandemic and has not been performed since, on the newly renovated Henry J. Leir Stage, along with a world premiere entitled Flight Study. Brooks will also premiere a new self-choreographed solo work entitled Quiet Music, set to the Nico Muhly piano score of the same name. Additional on-site events this week include a PillowTalk discussion about the history of all of the Pillow’s performance venues, and online events include performances by CONTRA-TIEMPO, Nrityagram Dance Ensemble, and Dorrance Dance as well as newly-posted PillowTalks. The Contemporary Program Performance Ensemble at The School at Jacob’s Pillow, directed by renowned choreographers Helen Pickett and Milton Myers, will also perform on the Henry J. Leir Stage on Saturday, July 24. This performance will be live-streamed via Zoom simultaneously. In addition to the Henry J. Leir Stage performances, Brian Brooks / Moving Company will premiere a site-specific performance entitled Viewpoint which pilots a tele-presence mobile dance studio to bring live performance from the Pillow to audiences around the world on Sat., July 24 at 12 p.m., created specifically for the Jacob’s Pillow campus.
    [Show full text]
  • Student Hanbook
    MARTHA GRAHAM SCHOOL OF CONTEMPORARY DANCE STUDENT HANBOOK Founder: Martha Graham Director of School: Virginie Mécène Director of Education: Tami Alesson International Student Advisor: Angela Wiele School Administrator: Karin Weidner-Mubanda 316 East 63rd Street New York, NY 10065 (212) 838 6886 marthagraham.org 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 4 School History and Mission General Open classes Levels – Elementary, Intermediate, Advance, and Open Mixed, Ballet, and Pilates 5 Full Time Programs 5 Independent Program 6 Professional Training Program 7 Third Year Post Certificate 8 Teacher Training Program 9 Graham II 9 Work Study 9 The Intensives Winter Intensive Summer Intensive 10 Course Description Repertory I & II Composition I & II Music I & II Dance History Pedagogy Others Lectures and Q&A 11 Fee Schedule Tuition breakdown per program payment plans etc. 12 Credit Assignment 13 Performance opportunities Graham II Student Concert Outside performance Credit assignments 13 Policies and Procedures 16 General Information and Facilities 17 EFSD 18 Readings 19 Graham School Library Information 2 21 Sample of Leave of Absence Form 22 Sample of Additional Semester Credit Registration Form 23 Sample of Full-Time Program In-Class Evaluation Form 24 Sample of Change of Level In-Class Evaluation Form 3 History and Mission of the Martha Graham School Of Contemporary Dance History Recognized as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century Martha Graham created a movement language based upon the expressive capacity of the human body. It all begun in 1926 when Martha Graham began teaching a group of dancers who had been drawn to her creative work. Thus began the Martha Graham Studio, to remain under her personal guidance for the next 66 yeas.
    [Show full text]
  • Transmissions and Traces: Rendering Dance
    INAUGURAL CONFERENCE Transmissions and Traces: Rendering Dance Oct. 19-22, 2017 HOSTED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF DANCE Sel Fou! (2016) by Bebe Miller i MAKE YOUR MOVE GET YOUR MFA IN DANCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN We encourage deep engagement through the transformative experiences of dancing and dance making. Hone your creative voice and benefit from an extraordinary breadth of resources at a leading research university. Two-year MFA includes full tuition coverage, health insurance, and stipend. smtd.umich.edu/dance CORD program 2017.indd 1 ii 7/27/17 1:33 PM DEPARTMENT OF DANCE dance.osu.edu | (614) 292-7977 | NASD Accredited Congratulations CORD+SDHS on the merger into DSA PhD in Dance Studies MFA in Dance Emerging scholars motivated to Dance artists eager to commit to a study critical theory, history, and rigorous three-year program literature in dance THINKING BODIES / AGILE MINDS PhD, MFA, BFA, Minor Faculty Movement Practice, Performance, Improvisation Susan Hadley, Chair • Harmony Bench • Ann Sofie Choreography, Dance Film, Creative Technologies Clemmensen • Dave Covey • Melanye White Dixon Pedagogy, Movement Analysis Karen Eliot • Hannah Kosstrin • Crystal Michelle History, Theory, Literature Perkins • Susan Van Pelt Petry • Daniel Roberts Music, Production, Lighting Mitchell Rose • Eddie Taketa • Valarie Williams Norah Zuniga Shaw Application Deadline: November 15, 2017 iii DANCE STUDIES ASSOCIATION Thank You Dance Studies Association (DSA) We thank Hughes, Hubbard & Reed LLP would like to thank Volunteer for the professional and generous legal Lawyers for the Arts (NY) for the support they contributed to the merger of important services they provide to the Congress on Research in Dance and the artists and arts organizations.
    [Show full text]
  • Social Media Analytics for Youtube Comments: Potential and Limitations1 Mike Thelwall
    Social Media Analytics for YouTube Comments: Potential and Limitations1 Mike Thelwall School of Mathematics and Computing, University of Wolverhampton, UK The need to elicit public opinion about predefined topics is widespread in the social sciences, government and business. Traditional survey-based methods are being partly replaced by social media data mining but their potential and limitations are poorly understood. This article investigates this issue by introducing and critically evaluating a systematic social media analytics strategy to gain insights about a topic from YouTube. The results of an investigation into sets of dance style videos show that it is possible to identify plausible patterns of subtopic difference, gender and sentiment. The analysis also points to the generic limitations of social media analytics that derive from their fundamentally exploratory multi-method nature. Keywords: social media analytics; YouTube comments; opinion mining; gender; sentiment; issues Introduction Questionnaires, interviews and focus groups are standard social science and market research methods for eliciting opinions from the public, service users or other specific groups. In industry, mining social media for opinions expressed in public seems to be standard practice with commercial social media analytics software suites that include an eclectic mix of data mining tools (e.g., Fan & Gordon, 2014). Within academia, there is also a drive to generate effective methods to mine the social web (Stieglitz, Dang-Xuan, Bruns, & Neuberger, 2014). From a research methods perspective, there is a need to investigate the generic limitations of new methodological approaches. Many existing social research techniques have been adapted for the web, such as content analysis (Henrich & Holmes, 2011), ethnography (Hine, 2000), surveys (Crick, 2012; Harrison, Wilding, Bowman, Fuller, Nicholls, et al.
    [Show full text]
  • When the Past Dances Into the Future: an Interview with African-Centered Dance Scholar, Dr
    When the Past Dances into the Future: An Interview with African-Centered Dance Scholar, Dr. Kariamu Welsh by Aimee Glocke, Ph.D. ([email protected]) African American and Diaspora Studies, University of Wyoming I was first introduced to Dr. Kariamu Welsh when I was a doctoral student in African American Studies at Temple University in the fall of 2004. As a formally trained dancer, it was a natural fit for me to enroll in an African Dance class as part of my doctoral degree program. The most interesting detail about the first time I met Dr. Kariamu was that it was not supposed to happen. In fact, another instructor was originally assigned to teach the section of African Dance I was enrolled in. Only later did I learn that Dr. Kariamu agreed to teach this class just a few days before our first class meeting. I truly believe this was divine order by God and the ancestors to not only ensure that our paths crossed, but to set the stage for our interaction to continue years later. Dr. Kariamu’s class was one of the best moments in my life and is something that continues to have a profound effect on me today. In addition to having the opportunity to just be in Dr. Kariamu’s presence and to learn the Umfundalai dance technique; this is where Katherine Dunham metaphorically found me. Although she was still alive at this time and did not make her transition until two years later; Dunham’s spirit and the spirit of many other African/Black dancers were always present in our class when we danced.
    [Show full text]