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BACKGROUND: The number of recent media reports of child maltreatment (CM) at international professional ballet schools surpasses the few studies on CM in dance. In general, studies on dance largely focus on psychological maltreatment. There is also little research on student experiences across the entire professional ballet school context, which typically include dance, academic, social life, and healthcare experiences, and for some students, living in residence or a homestay from a young age. OBJECTIVE: To explore how former professional ballet school students characterize and make sense of experiences of CM across the entire school context in dance training, academics, social life, living (e.g., in residence, homestay), and healthcare. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Participants were 15 former professional ballet school students (12 women, three men) aged 18-27 years old across six countries. METHODS: Data from online semi-structured interviews and questionnaires were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. RESULTS: Experiences were interpreted in the wider context of participants' former ballet schools. Themes included: 1) psychological maltreatment in and beyond the studio; 2) neglect and devaluation: costs of over-prioritizing ballet; 3) physicalabuse: outdated but still rationalized as instrumental; and 4) sexual abuse in blurred private and public spaces. CONCLUSIONS: Participants used CM vocabulary to describe their own and peers' experiences and emphasized that CM should not be normalized. Sense making about experiences suggested a need for more ballet school community awareness about the multiple potential forms of harm of CM, as well as more research, intervention, and advocacy about CM at ballet schools.

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Greater levels of physical fitness have been linked to improved dance performance and decreased injury incidence. The aim was to review the efficacy of physical fitness training on dance injury. The electronic databases CINAHL, Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, MEDLINE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure were used to search peer-reviewed published articles in English or Chinese. Studies were scored using Strength of the Evidence for a Conclusion and a risk bias checklist. 10 studies met the inclusion criteria from an initial 2450 publications. These studies offered physical fitness training for professional (n = 3) and pre-professional dancers (n = 7), participant sample size ranged between 5 to 62, ages from 11 to 27 years, and most participants were females. Assessment scores were classified as Fair (n = 1), Limited (n = 7), and Expert Opinion Only (n = 2) and risk of bias scores ranged from 22.7-68.2 %. After physical fitness training, 80 % of studies reported significant benefits in injury rate, the time between injuries, pain intensity, pain severity, missed dance activities and injury count. This review suggests that physical fitness training could have a beneficial effect on injury incidence in dance. The evidence is limited by the current study methodologies.

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BACKGROUND: Dance represents a promising alternative to traditional physical activity (PA), appealing due to its ease of implementation and its associated health benefits. By incorporating technology-based dance interventions into the development of PA programs, there is potential to significantly increase PA participation and improve fitness levels across diverse population groups. This systematic scoping review and meta-synthesis aimed to investigate the effectiveness of technology-based dance interventions as a means of advancing public health objectives. METHODS: A comprehensive literature review was conducted using various databases ( PubMed, Web of Science, ProQuest, MEDLINE, and SPORTDiscus) to identify pertinent publications. We specifically focused on studies evaluated the impact of technology-based dance interventions on health-related outcomes and PA levels. Methodological quality assessment was carried out using the Cochrane RoB 2 and ROBINS-I tools. Data analysis and theme identification were facilitated using NVivo 14. Additionally, this study was registered on the Open Science Framework at https://osf.io/rynce/registrations. RESULTS: A total of 3135 items identified through the literature search. Following screening, twelve items met the study's inclusion criteria, with an additional three articles located through manual searching. These 15 studies examined on three types of technology-based dance intervention: mobile health (mHealth) combination, online /telerehabilitation classes, and exergaming dance programs. The analysis included 344 participants, with mean ages ranging from 15.3 ± 1.2-73.6 ± 2.2 years. There were five population groups across the studies: middle-aged and older adults, individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD), individuals with stroke, overweight adults, and overweight adolescents. The meta-synthesis revealed three primary themes: Acceptability, Intervention effects, and Technology combinations. CONCLUSION: The advantages highlighted in this scoping review and meta-synthesis of technology-based dance interventions indicating that this type of PA could provide an effective solution to the growing issue of physical inactivity. It also presents a promising strategy for systematically improving fitness and health across populations, particularly among older individuals.

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OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether transversus abdominis activation (TrA), hip strength, and movement competency are associated with the incidence of musculoskeletal disorder episodes (MDEs) in dancers when controlling for confounding variables. The secondary objectives were to determine if there were differences between professional and preprofessional dancers for the aforementioned factors, as well as to determine if there were differences in TrA activation and hip strength between the dominant and non-dominant sides. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. METHODS: 118 dancers were recruited. The independent variables were collected at the beginning of the dance season: 1) TrA activation, 2) hip strength, and 3) movement competency. To assess the development of MDEs, a weekly electronic diary was used over a 38-week period. MDEs were compiled for each dancer's whole body and subdivided into total musculoskeletal disorder episodes (all body parts) and lower quadrant musculoskeletal disorder episodes (lower limb and lower back). RESULTS: Lower TrA, as well as higher hip abductor and external rotator strength, were associated with a lower incidence of MDEs. TrA activation (ß = 0.260, p = 0.023) and hip external rotator strength (ß = -0.537, p = 0.002) could significantly explain 25.4% of the variance of total MDEs, as well as 20.9% of the variance of lower quadrant musculoskeletal disorder episodes (ß = 0.272, p = 0.016; ß = -0.459, p = 0.011). No significant associations were found between movement competency and MDEs. CONCLUSIONS: Higher hip strength could be a protective factor for MDEs among dancers. Further studies are needed to better understand the involvement of the transversus abdominis in MDEs.

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ABSTRACT: Seifert Gonzales, AM and Stenson, MC. Physiological demands of competitive collegiate dance. J Strength Cond Res 38(9): e503-e509, 2024-Competitive collegiate dance combines elements of gymnastics and acrobatics with more traditional styles, such as ballet, jazz, and modern dance. Assessing the physiological demands and identifying clear measures of intensity and duration of such dance provide a framework for planning the competitive season and developing strength and conditioning programs. This study examined the blood lactate (BL), heart rate (HR), and ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) of 14 well-trained female dancers on a competitive collegiate dance team. Subjects completed a treadmill test to determine their lactate threshold (LT) and then performed a 120-second choreographed jazz dance routine in cumulative 30-second segments, during which physiological markers were measured. All subjects exceeded their individually determined LT values by 90 seconds into the dance routine. A moderate (rs = 0.53; p < 0.001) positive correlation was observed between HR and RPE, as was a strong (rs = 0.70; p < 0.001) positive correlation between BL and RPE. Subjects worked at or above LT for much of the 120-second jazz dance routine, indicating that competitive collegiate dance is physiologically demanding and highly anaerobic. Understanding the physiological demands of competitive collegiate dance allows strength and conditioning professionals to develop, monitor, and adjust training parameters, which will aid in minimizing injury and maximizing competitive performance in collegiate dancers.

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The stability of human upright posture determines the range and dynamics of movements performed. Consequently, the repertoire and quality of the movements performed by a dancer are mainly determined by the efficiency of postural control. This is of particular importance in professional dance training that should focus on shaping optimal movement­posture interaction. To get a deeper insight into this problem, the impact of the training on postural sway characteristics during quiet stance was analyzed in 16 female students in the seventh grade of a ballet school and compared with the size­ and age­matched group of secondary school students. Center of pressure trajectories were recorded for 25.6 s while standing quiet with eyes open (EO) and then with eyes closed (EC). The assessment of postural control was based on novel normalized sway parameters including sway vector (SV), sway anteroposterior (AP) and mediolateral (ML) directional indices (DIAP and DIML), and sway ratios (SRAP and SRML). The results document a significant contribution of vision to postural stability control in ballet students, which seems to compensate for training­related changes in joint mobility and altered activity ranges of the legs' muscles. In the control group standing with EC, SV amplitude increased only by 18% whereas in the ballet students tested in the same conditions, the increase exceeded 72%. Under full control of standing posture (EO test), the training­related increase of leg muscle forces allows dancers to maintain balance with lesser effort as documented here by 21% reduced SRAP. Additionally, the dancers while tested with their EC exhibited a 12% increase in the anteroposterior sway with a concomitant reduction of the mediolateral sway. The resulting changes in the postural control asymmetry were documented by both DIAP/DIML and SV azimuth. In conclusion, our novel analysis of postural sway seems a useful tool in monitoring the effects of training as well as the proper course of postural control development in children and adolescents.

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This study analyzes the life stories of eight young people living with vertically transmitted HIV in order to understand their perceptions marked by secrecy and silence regarding their experiences with the virus. Conducted at a specialized outpatient clinic in Rio de Janeiro, the study adopted circle dance, a Complementary and Integrative Health Practice, as a care tool. Using a qualitative approach and Life History as a data collection method, the focus was to understand the youth's experiences related to the disease and the crucial aspects of their lives. Three girls and five boys participated in the study, all aware of their diagnosis. The principal emerging themes included family dynamics, school environment connection, challenges in treatment adherence, age at the time of diagnosis disclosure, and time elapsed since then. Analyzing these young people's narratives allowed us to explore individual and social aspects of their experiences, revealing their similarities and differences. The circle dance workshops provided a playful space for expressing emotions and feelings through body movements, expanding young people's perspectives on the future.

Este estudo analisa as histórias de vida de oito jovens vivendo com HIV por transmissão vertical, visando compreender suas percepções marcadas pelo segredo e silêncio sobre suas vivências com o vírus. Realizado em ambulatório especializado no Rio de Janeiro, o estudo adotou como ferramenta de cuidado a dança circular, considerada uma Prática Integrativa e Complementar em Saúde. Utilizando abordagem qualitativa e a História de Vida como método de coleta, o foco foi compreender as experiências dos jovens, não apenas relacionadas à doença, mas também a aspectos cruciais de suas vidas. Participaram do estudo três meninas e cinco meninos, todos cientes de seu diagnóstico. Os principais temas emergentes incluíram dinâmica familiar, conexão com o ambiente escolar, desafios na adesão ao tratamento, idade no momento da revelação do diagnóstico e tempo decorrido desde então. A análise das narrativas desses jovens, permitiu explorar aspectos individuais e sociais da experiência, revelando similaridades e diferenças entre eles. As oficinas de dança circular ofereceram um espaço lúdico para a expressão de emoções e sentimentos por meio dos movimentos corporais, ampliando as perspectivas dos jovens em relação ao futuro.

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BACKGROUND: Multidomain interventions have demonstrable benefits for promoting healthy aging, but self-empowerment strategies to sustain long-term gains remain elusive. OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the effects of digital somatosensory dance game participation on brain imagery changes as primary outcomes and other physical and mental health measures as secondary outcomes related to healthy aging. METHODS: Between August 31, 2020, and June 27, 2021, this randomized controlled trial recruited 60 eligible participants older than 55 years with no recent engagement in digital dance games. A computer-generated randomization sequence was used to allocate participants 1:1, without stratification, to an intervention group (n=30) who underwent digital somatosensory dance game training or a control group (n=30). An anonymized code masked the intervention allocations from the investigators, and individuals who assigned the interventions were not involved in analyzing the study data. The intervention entailed two 30-minute dance game sessions per week for 6 months, and the control group received healthy aging education. Primary outcomes were brain imagery changes. All variables were measured at baseline and the 6-month follow-up, and intervention effects were estimated using t tests with intention-to-treat analyses. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, intervention participants had significantly different brain imagery in the gray matter volume (GMV) of the left putamen (estimate 0.016, 95% CI 0.008 to 0.024; P<.001), GMV of the left pallidum (estimate 0.02, 95% CI 0.006 to 0.034; P=.004), and fractional amplitude of low frequency fluctuations of the left pallidum (estimate 0.262, 95% CI 0.084 to 0.439; P=.004). Additionally, the intervention group had different imagery in the cerebellum VI GMV (estimate 0.011, 95% CI 0.003 to 0.02; P=.01). The intervention group also had improved total Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores (estimate 1.2, 95% CI 0.27 to -2.13; P<.01), quality of life (estimate 7.08, 95% CI 2.35 to 11.82; P=.004), and time spent sitting on weekdays (estimate -1.96, 95% CI -3.33 to -0.60; P=.005). Furthermore, dance performance was significantly associated with cognitive performance (P=.003), health status (P=.14), resilience (P=.007), and demoralization (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: Digital somatosensory dance game participation for 6 months was associated with brain imagery changes in multiple regions involving somatosensory, motor, visual, and attention functions, which were consistent with phenotypic improvements associated with healthy aging. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05411042; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05411042.

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Objective: To investigate the effects of 12-week weight-bearing dance aerobics (WBDA) on muscle morphology, strength and functional fitness in older women. Methods: This controlled study recruited 37 female participants (66.31y ± 3.83) and divided them into intervention and control groups according to willingness. The intervention group received 90-min WBDA thrice a week for 12 weeks, while the control group maintained normal activities. The groups were then compared by measuring muscle thickness, fiber length and pennation angle by ultrasound, muscle strength using an isokinetic multi-joint module and functional fitness, such as 2-min step test, 30-s chair stand, chair sit-and-reach, TUG and single-legged closed-eyed standing test. The morphology, strength, and functional fitness were compared using ANCOVA or Mann-Whitney U test to study the effects of 12 weeks WBDA. Results: Among all recruited participants, 33 completed all tests. After 12 weeks, the thickness of the vastus intermedius (F = 17.85, P < 0.01) and quadriceps (F = 15.62, P < 0.01) was significantly increased in the intervention group compared to the control group, along with a significant increase in the torque/weight of the knee flexor muscles (F = 4.47, P = 0.04). Similarly, the intervention group revealed a significant improvement in the single-legged closed-eyed standing test (z = -2.16, P = 0.03) compared to the control group. Conclusion: The study concluded that compared to the non-exercising control group, 12-week WBDA was shown to thicken vastus intermedius, increase muscle strength, and improve physical function in older women. In addition, this study provides a reference exercise program for older women.

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BACKGROUND: Despite the recognized psychological benefits of traditional dance forms, the impact of newer forms, such as pole dancing, on mental well-being and sexual self-concept remains underexplored. This protocol outlines a systematic review and meta-analysis aimed at elucidating the effects of pole dancing, a burgeoning non-pharmacological intervention, on these dimensions of mental health. METHODS: This systematic review was registered in the PROSPERO. We will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis Protocol to accomplish the systematic review protocol. This review will systematically search electronic databases, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Medline, and CNKI, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the impact of pole dancing on mental well-being and sexual self-concept. Two independent evaluators will screen the literature, extract data, and evaluate study quality and bias. Data synthesis will utilize Stata 14.0 and Revman 5.4, employing random-effects models. The Grading of Recommendations, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system will appraise evidence reliability, with subgroup analysis exploring heterogeneity sources. Publication bias will be assessed through funnel plots and Egger's regression tests. DISCUSSION: This review aims to fill the gap in the current literature by providing a comprehensive evaluation of pole dancing's psychological effects. It is anticipated that this systematic review and meta-analysis will offer valuable insights for health policy and practice, advocating for the inclusion of pole dancing in mental health and sexual well-being interventions. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Systematic review registration: PROSPERO CRD42024529369.

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INTRODUCTION: Dancers are expected to navigate major challenges in their careers that might take a toll on their physical and mental health. To address underlying factors that might increase dancers' mental and physical health difficulties, research suggests the systematic use of techniques to build mental skills that can reduce risk factors and enhance protective factors against the challenges dancers encounter. However, existing mental skills training interventions in dance present a lack of consistency in design, content and duration, making it difficult to provide evidence-based recommendations. Hence, dance researchers and practitioners would benefit from a mixed methods systematic review (MMSR) of the why, what and how of these interventions. Adopting tools such as the Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) can aid this endeavour by describing replicable aspects of interventions, thus offering dance researchers suggestions on how to understand, appraise and report intervention characteristics and processes in dance. Therefore, this protocol outlines a MMSR that will employ TIDieR to identify and assess characteristics of mental skills interventions in dance. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A systematic search will be undertaken in Psycinfo, Medline, Embase, Sportdiscus, Web of Science and the first 30 pages of GoogleScholar. Following the search, two reviewers will independently screen identified studies in Covidence. One reviewer will extract data using the TIDieR framework and the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) for quality appraisal, while a second reviewer will check a sample of extracted studies for accuracy. A convergent integrated synthesis will be conducted where quantitative and qualitative evidence will be integrated by qualitising the quantitative data into textual descriptions. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: There is no requirement for ethical approval for this systematic review as no empirical data will be collected. The findings will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed publication in a scientific journal and presentations in several different forums (eg, a dance psychology network, at scientific and applied conferences). PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42024537249.

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Evidence suggests that multiple sclerosis (MS) induces a decline in motor and cognitive function and provokes a shift in gut microbiome composition in patients. Therefore, the aim of the study was to explore the effect of dance classes on the motor and cognitive functions and gut microbiota composition of MS patients. In this randomized controlled trial, 36 patients were randomly divided into two groups: the experimental group (n = 18) and the passive control group (n = 18). Supervised rock and roll and sports dance classes were performed for 12 weeks at a frequency of two times a week. Before and after the intervention, fecal samples were taken and the motor and cognitive function assessments were completed. Fecal microbiota were categorized using primers targeting the V3-V4 region of 16S rDNA. Our results revealed significant differences in mobility performance (T25-FWT), attention and working memory (TMT B), and finger dexterity (9-HPT) within the experimental group. Furthermore, we reported favorable shifts in gut microbial communities (an increase in Blautia stercoris and a decrease in Ruminococcus torques) within the experimental group. In conclusion, our randomized control trial on the effects of 12-week dance classes in MS patients found significant improvements in motor and cognitive functions, with further moderate influence on gut microbiota composition.

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OBJECTIVE: Cognitive decline represents a critical clinical and public health issue that adversely affects the quality of life for older patients and their families. This concern was exacerbated by the reduced engagement in outdoor activities among seniors during the COVID-19 pandemic, presenting substantial challenges to aging societies. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of health qigong combined with Tibetan dance on working memory in middle-aged and elderly women, and to determine its potential as a preventive strategy against cognitive disorders. METHODS: A pilot study was conducted to compare the effects of a Health Qigong exercise intervention with those of everyday life and sports routines. The primary outcome measure was working memory assessed using a 2-Back working memory task research paradigm. Between July and September 2021, a total of 33 women were divided into four groups: two middle-aged groups (N = 18, with 8 women in the experimental group and 10 in the control group) and two elderly groups (N = 15, with 7 in the experimental group and 8 in the control group). Participants in the experimental groups underwent a 10-week intervention, consisting of three 60-min sessions per week. Each session included a warm-up, Health Qigong combined with Tibetan dance, and a cool-down. Throughout the study, all participants continued their daily routines. Response times and error rates were analyzed using a mixed-design repeated-measures analysis of variance. RESULTS: A simple effects analysis revealed that Health Qigong combined with Tibetan dance significantly enhanced 2-Back response time and error rate in the middle-aged group. In contrast, the 2-Back error rate significantly increased in the elderly control group that did not receive the intervention (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Health Qigong demonstrates beneficial effects on middle-aged and elderly women. Combining Health Qigong with dance may serve as a preventive measure against cognitive disorders. This pioneering study conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, assesses the new possibility of Health Qigong and dance, with the objective to offer more diverse indoor exercise options for middle-aged and elderly women.

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The forced turnout has a perceived risk of development of hallux valgus (HV) in ballet dancers. We determined how the forced turnout affects the sagittal mobility of the first tarsometatarsal (TMT) joint, which is one of the pathogenic factors of HV development. Seventeen female ballet dancers (body mass index: 18.2 ± 1.8 kg/m2) were included and performed demi-plié in control, functional turnout, and forced turnout conditions. Ultrasound imaging synchronized with a three-dimensional motion analysis system was used for measuring the vertical locations of the first metatarsal and medial cuneiform (MC) to evaluate the first TMT joint mobility. Plantar displacement of MC and the first TMT joint mobility in the forced turnout were the greatest among the 3 conditions. Multiple regression analysis indicated that the greater extent of the forcing angle might increase the displacement of MC and the first TMT joint mobility. Evaluating the sagittal mobility of the first TMT joint in the forced turnout can assist in understanding the association between inappropriate techniques including the forced turnout and HV development in ballet dancers. Since the excessive mobility of the first TMT joint is a factor in HV development, the acquirement of adequate active turnout may have the potential to prevent HV development in ballet dancers.

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Dancers are at heightened risk for eating disorders (EDs) and have job and training demands that obscure ED assessment and likely impede treatment. Two behavioral manifestations of ED psychopathology that may present uniquely in a dance environment are body checking and body avoidance. The current study sought to provide a foundational understanding of the phenomenology of body checking and avoidance among dancers by assessing the reliability (i.e., internal consistency) of existing body checking and avoidance measures and the relationships, or convergent validity, between measures of body checking and avoidance and measures of related constructs. Eighty professional and pre-professional (i.e., conservatory level) dancers (78.8 % female) from seven dance genres completed self-report measures of body checking and avoidance, ED pathology, clinical perfectionism, depression, and anxiety. Across the dancer sample, body checking and avoidance measures demonstrated adequate internal consistency. More frequent body checking and body avoidance was strongly related to higher levels of ED pathology. There were moderate to strong correlations between body checking and body avoidance and clinical perfectionism, depression, and anxiety such that higher body checking and body avoidance was related to higher clinical perfectionism, depression, and anxiety. Exploratory analyses found no significant differences between ballet dancers and dancers of other dance genres; professional dancers scored in the normative range on measures of body checking and body avoidance. Dancers' qualitative descriptions of body checking and avoidance revealed behaviors not included in existing questionnaires, such as unique mirror use behaviors, technology-assisted body checking, and the checking and avoidance of body parts relevant to the dance-specific body ideal. Results support the inclusion of body checking and avoidance interventions in ED treatments for dancers (particularly pre-professional dancers) and emphasize the need for dancer-specific ED assessment methods.

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EMOKINE is a software package and dataset creation suite for emotional full-body movement research in experimental psychology, affective neuroscience, and computer vision. A computational framework, comprehensive instructions, a pilot dataset, observer ratings, and kinematic feature extraction code are provided to facilitate future dataset creations at scale. In addition, the EMOKINE framework outlines how complex sequences of movements may advance emotion research. Traditionally, often emotional-'action'-based stimuli are used in such research, like hand-waving or walking motions. Here instead, a pilot dataset is provided with short dance choreographies, repeated several times by a dancer who expressed different emotional intentions at each repetition: anger, contentment, fear, joy, neutrality, and sadness. The dataset was simultaneously filmed professionally, and recorded using XSENS® motion capture technology (17 sensors, 240 frames/second). Thirty-two statistics from 12 kinematic features were extracted offline, for the first time in one single dataset: speed, acceleration, angular speed, angular acceleration, limb contraction, distance to center of mass, quantity of motion, dimensionless jerk (integral), head angle (with regards to vertical axis and to back), and space (convex hull 2D and 3D). Average, median absolute deviation (MAD), and maximum value were computed as applicable. The EMOKINE software is appliable to other motion-capture systems and is openly available on the Zenodo Repository. Releases on GitHub include: (i) the code to extract the 32 statistics, (ii) a rigging plugin for Python for MVNX file-conversion to Blender format (MVNX=output file XSENS® system), and (iii) a Python-script-powered custom software to assist with blurring faces; latter two under GPLv3 licenses.

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Drawing on qualitative data from a study of older adults' participation in a contemporary dance group, this paper asks what can be gained from new materialist concepts of the older body, and how they can expand cultural gerontological thinking about embodiment. This paper examines the connections between the older body, movement, thoughts, words and spaces, arguing that dance demonstrates that there is a spatial dimension to embodiment. In drawing from models of materiality emerging in gerontology, this paper provides insights about the experience of age, questioning fundamental categorizations promoted in Western culture, and re-thinks agency in relation to the body and space. Emphasising the importance of the material world in the production of the social has important implications in terms of understanding the experience of ageing within an ageist society.

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Recognizing postures in multi-person dance scenarios presents challenges due to mutual body part obstruction and varying distortions across different dance actions. These challenges include differences in proximity and size, demanding precision in capturing fine details to convey action expressiveness. Robustness in recognition becomes crucial in complex real-world environments. To tackle these issues, our study introduces a novel approach, i.e., Multi-Person Dance Tiered Posture Recognition with Cross Progressive Multi-Resolution Representation Integration (CPMRI) and Tiered Posture Recognition (TPR) modules. The CPMRI module seamlessly merges high-level features, rich in semantic information, with low-level features that provide precise spatial details. Leveraging a cross progressive approach, it retains semantic understanding while enhancing spatial precision, bolstering the network's feature representation capabilities. Through innovative feature concatenation techniques, it efficiently blends high-resolution and low-resolution features, forming a comprehensive multi-resolution representation. This approach significantly improves posture recognition robustness, especially in intricate dance postures involving scale variations. The TPR module classifies body key points into core torso joints and extremity joints based on distinct distortion characteristics. Employing a three-tier tiered network, it progressively refines posture recognition. By addressing the optimal matching problem between torso and extremity joints, the module ensures accurate connections, refining the precision of body key point locations. Experimental evaluations against state-of-the-art methods using MSCOCO2017 and a custom Chinese dance dataset validate our approach's effectiveness. Evaluation metrics including Object Keypoint Similarity (OKS)-based Average Precision (AP), mean Average Precision (mAP), and Average Recall (AR) underscore the efficacy of the proposed method.

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INTRODUCTION: There is growing research evidence on bodily discourses and body image issues of women with disabilities. Within the art-based intervention repertoire for persons with disabilities, dance and movement-based therapies and interventions are gaining prominence. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of dance sessions (delivered online) on body image, body satisfaction/dissatisfaction, and wellbeing of women with disabilities. METHOD: A quasi-experimental waitlist control design study was conducted with data collected at two time points: baseline or pre-test and five-months later or post-test. Outcomes were measured using the Body Image Scale and the WHO-5-Wellbeing Index. RESULTS: The dance sessions were effective (Hedges' g = -0.56 -0.88; p < 0.01) and post-test body dissatisfaction scores were lower and wellbeing scores were higher for participants with a college degree or postgraduate degree, self-employed or students, and whose intervention compliance was above threshold (>50% dance sessions attended and corresponding homework sessions completed). Tobit regression models indicated that it was possible to estimate post-test outcomes due to dance sessions alone, controlling for significant socio-demographics. DISCUSSION: The domain knowledge of non-pharmacological art-based interventions for persons with disabilities, particularly women, is supported. CONCLUSIONS: Findings commend dance sessions as effective psychotherapeutic mechanisms to mitigate body dissatisfaction, improve body image and wellbeing of women with disabilities. Future research may focus on large-scale cross-sectional trials, variations in the repertoire for women with different disability types and histories, and qualitative narratives.

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BACKGROUND: The 'Fit to Dance?' survey has been used in a number of studies to understand the health and wellbeing of dancers. These data have not been collected in Brazil as there is no validated questionnaire available in Brazilian Portuguese, culturally validated in Brazil with a scope as broad and comprehensive as that of 'Fit to Dance?'. OBJECTIVE: Translate into Brazilian Portuguese and culturally validate the questionnaire 'Fit to Dance?' in Brazil. METHODS: This was a validity and reliability study of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the 'Fit to Dance?' SURVEY: The stages of the research were: translation into the target language (Brazilian Portuguese), translation synthesis, translation validation and cross-cultural adaptation by a committee of experts in Dance Medicine and Science (DMS), reverse translation into English, pilot study (test/retest), and final version of the questionnaire. RESULTS: The questionnaire was applied to 21 dancers of different dance genres, with an age average of 25 ± 7.0 years. Cronbach's alpha (0.705), ICC (0.984) and Kappa (0.794) results reached adequate values. CONCLUSION: The Brazilian Portuguese version of the questionnaire 'Fit to Dance?' is effective, has adequate levels of validity and reliability, and can be used to report injuries and aspects of health and well-being of Brazilian dancers.

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