Date of Award

12-2020

Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

First Advisor

Elise Risher

Abstract

This paper illuminates how the field of dance movement therapy can expand its reach to different populations in need of kinesthetic empathy. This heuristic review discusses the treatment option of dance/movement therapy for Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD). Dance/movement therapy is unique in the way it addresses the personal unconscious through creative non-verbal communication. Video gaming is a worldwide pastime that is captivating and fun for millions of people although the present concern is when video gaming becomes an uncontrolled behavioral addiction. Dance/movement theorist Trudy Schoop asserted, “It is only through the body that humans experience reality.” It is this researcher’s opinion that human interaction is a vital necessity to our well-being and cannot be replaced by digital contact through devices we have created to physically separate ourselves from one another. There is currently no literature on the use of dance/movement therapy as a treatment for IGD, thus this thesis explores how video games affect our minds and bodies and proposes that dance/movement therapy can be an effective intervention.

Download

Share

COinS