Examining How the Culture of Collegiate Ballroom Dance Influences Body Image Erp Ceptions
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University of Northern Colorado Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC Master's Theses Student Research 12-11-2020 Strictly Ballroom: Examining how the Culture of Collegiate Ballroom Dance Influences Body Image erP ceptions Rachel Neil [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digscholarship.unco.edu/theses Recommended Citation Neil, Rachel, "Strictly Ballroom: Examining how the Culture of Collegiate Ballroom Dance Influences Body Image Perceptions" (2020). Master's Theses. 188. https://digscholarship.unco.edu/theses/188 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Research at Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC. For more information, please contact [email protected]. © 2020 RACHEL NEIL ALL RIGHTS RESERVED UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN COLORADO Greeley, Colorado The Graduate School STRICTLY BALLROOM: EXAMINING HOW THE CULTURE OF COLLEGIATE BALLROOM DANCE INFLUENCES BODY IMAGE PERCEPTIONS A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Rachel Neil College of Performing and Visual Arts School of Theatre Arts and Dance Dance Education December 2020 This Thesis by: Rachel Neil Entitled: Strictly Ballroom: Examining how the Culture of Collegiate Ballroom Dance Influences Body Image Perceptions has been approved as meeting the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the College of Performing and Visual Arts in the School of Theatre Arts and Dance, Program of Dance Education Accepted by the Thesis Committee: _________________________________________________________ Christy O’Connell-Black, M.A., Advisor __________________________________________________________ Sandra L. Minton, Ph.D., Committee Member Accepted by the Graduate School: ____________________________________________________________________ Jeri-Anne Lyons, Ph.D. Dean of the Graduate School Associate Vice President for Research ABSTRACT Neil, Rachel Corinne. Strictly Ballroom: Examining how the Culture of Collegiate Ballroom Dance Influences Body Image Perceptions. Unpublished Master of Arts thesis, University of Northern Colorado, 2020. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence that collegiate ballroom dance programs have on participants’ body image perception and self-esteem and to identify what sort of effect those perceptions have on performance satisfaction. In this project the researcher surveyed twenty-four students, ten males and fourteen females, who were presently involved in a collegiate ballroom dance program with a goal of identifying what sort of influence the culture of their ballroom dance programs had on each participant’s body image and self-esteem. The research instrument used in this study was an electronic survey that included yes or no questions, numerical scale questions, and short answer questions. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were utilized to analyze data in this study. Limitations to this study include the survey questions and the number of participants. The survey was created by the researcher in an attempt to be unbiased, but it was not tested for validity or reliability. The total number of participants was also very limited possibly due to universities and colleges throughout the country transitioning to virtual learning to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus pandemic which occurred at the time of distribution of the survey. All participants except one completed the survey while still attending school in person. An analysis of the data suggested that there is no specific ballroom influence on body image perception and self-esteem in most participants. Although almost all the participants noted that their appearance does influence their performance satisfaction and feelings in costumes, iii there was no data to suggest their collegiate ballroom dance programs had any sort of influence on this perception. Recommendations for further research would include focusing on competitive collegiate ballroom dance programs or including a survey question that asks about years involved in dance or competitive involvement. The research questions that were the focus of this study were: Q1 In what ways does the culture of collegiate ballroom dance programs promote a specific body image perception? Q2 To what degree does body image perception influence performance satisfaction and self-esteem? iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all the individuals in my life who helped me reach this milestone: My Mom, Nancy Hinde, who has always been my biggest motivator and fan. Thank you for encouraging me to chase my dreams. My Dad, Steven Hinde for his support and encouragement throughout this journey. All of the teachers in my life who inspired me and helped fuel my love and passion for dance. My amazing cohort sisters for the support, love, and laughs they provided me. Lastly, my amazing husband who believed in me and pushed me to be the best scholar and artist I could be. I would not be where I am without his endless love, support, and patience. v TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………….. 1 Goal of Thesis Purpose of Study Significance of Study II. LITERATURE REVIEW……………………………………………… 6 Ballroom Dance Body Image III. METHODOLOGY……………………………………………………… 31 Overview Research Design and Methods Research Participants Research Instruments Used in the Study Data Analysis Summary IV. DISCUSSION…………………………………………………………. 38 Body Image Self-Esteem Ballroom Specific Questions about Body Image and Self-Esteem Summary V. CONCLUSION……………………………………………………….. 49 Addressing the Research Questions Methods Interpretations of the Findings Limitations of the Study Recommendations for Further Research Conclusion WORKS CITED………………………………………………………………………… 55 APPENDIX……………………………………………………………………………... 61 A. Institutional Review Board Documents 61 B. Consent Forms 66 C. Research Instruments 69 vi LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 2.1 Couple Dancing Waltz………………………………………………….. 12 FIGURE 2.2 Couple Dancing Foxtrot ………………………………………………... 12 FIGURE 2.3 Couple Dancing Cha-Cha………………………………………………. 13 FIGURE 2.4 Couple Dancing Bolero…………………………………………………. 13 FIGURE 2.5 Couple Dancing Paso doble ……………………………………………. 18 FIGURE 2.6 Couple’s Final Pose in Paso doble……………………………………… 19 FIGURE 3.1 Demographic of Research Participants………………………………… 34 FIGURE 3.2 Age Range of Research Participants…………………………………… 34 FIGURE 4.1 Participant Responses to Survey Question Six………………………… 39 FIGURE 4.2 Themes Found in Participant Responses to Survey Question Six……… 40 FIGURE 4.3 Participant Responses to Survey Question Eighteen…………………… 41 FIGURE 4.4 Participants’ Self-Esteem Rated on a Scale of Zero to Ten…………….. 43 FIGURE 4.5 Participant Responses to Survey Question Fourteen…………………… 44 FIGURE 4.6 Participant Responses to Survey Question Fifteen……………………... 46 vii LIST OF TABLES TABLE 2.1 Elaborated Costuming Trends, by Ballroom Style and Gender………… 15 TABLE 2.2 Judging Criteria Issued by the WDSF in 2013…………………………. 22 TABLE 4.1 Participant Responses to Numerical Scale Questions about Body Image... 42 TABLE 4.2 Participant Responses to Numerical Scale Questions about Self-Esteem... 44 TABLE 4.3 Participant Responses to Numerical Scale Questions that are Specific to 47 Ballroom Dance…………………………………………………………... viii 1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Goal of Thesis Ballroom dance has a unique and specific culture with its own social rules and languages, codes and hierarchies, and celebrities, that remain foreign and unknown to the ‘outsider’ (Marion 26). Although ballroom dancers may be from all around the world, the culture of ballroom dance stays consistent throughout time; cultural anthropologist Jonathon Marion suggests that this shared culture could be why two dancers might easily dance together even if they do not share the same language. The culture of ballroom dance, “informs the meanings of bodily movement, display and performance- including clothing, grooming and costuming with which those bodies are presented” (25-6). Body image and dance have often been thought to coincide. Multiple studies have shown dancers at the professional and pre-professional level consistently strive for a thin, diminutive physique, often starting as young as six years old (Albano 6). According to the American Psychological Association, negative body image is a principal component and predictor of a variety of health problems such as depression, obesity, body dysmorphic disorder, and eating disorders. Dancers have often been considered a high-risk group for eating disorders (Danis et al. 856). Although the exact cause of eating disorders is unknown, the most empirically supported theory explains that: 2 the acquisition and maintenance of body-image disturbance is the sociocultural theory. This theory’s premise is that social pressures are the catalyst for people’s desire to conform to unrealistic physical standards. (Hausenblas and Fallon 34) Based on Lev Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory as presented in his works on psychological development in children, the culture of ballroom dance could potentially push dancers to conform to a specific body type. The goal of this study was to examine how the culture of ballroom dance, specifically at a collegiate level, influences an individual’s perception of body image and the ways that this culture dictates, and perhaps, perpetuates a particular body image and to what degree such perception influences