Dance Movement Therapy with Children: Practical Aspects of Remote Group Work

Abstract

The global COVID-19 outbreak has forced psychotherapists to find creative ways to continue treating their clients from afar. Dance movement therapy emphasizes the body–mind connection and offers a unique mode of emotional intervention for supporting mental processes. The present study is the first to examine the distinctive qualities of group dance movement therapy in the context of remote emotional intervention with young children. Fourteen preschool children participated in six DMT meetings. The data generated three themes: 1. play as a platform for transforming technical complexity into an expression of the inner world; 2. accessories and props as means of motivation for movement and imaginative play; 3. playfulness-inhibiting conditions in settings of remote therapy. The discussion examines the significance of bodily expressions in remote therapy for understanding the needs of children in times of crisis and for getting acquainted with feelings and sensations which do not lend themselves easily to verbal expression.

Special Issue: Arts Therapies with Children and Adolescents—Editorial

“…The last section deals with more general issues in the field of arts therapy for children and adolescents. Shuper-Engelhard and Vulcan [13] examine the distinctive qualities of group dance and movement therapy in the context of a remote emotional intervention with young children. Metzl [14] reviews current theoretical frameworks of working with children and adolescents with regard to their socio-political and developmental implications for art therapy practice within different settings and systems.…”