Michelle Schachtler Dwarika

Thesis Title: The pressure to succeed: Promoting mental health and well-being in young vocational dancers

Findings in a study on dance students point to that 45% of the participating dancers suffered from at least one mental health issue during an academic year (van Winden et al. 2019). Poor mental health can arise through increasing stress resulting from different sources, such as parental, academic, and peer-related pressures. The often intense, vocational dance environments seem, additionally, to present a unique set of pressures which could have a negative impact on students’ mental health and well-being. Yet, we know little about these stressors and their influence on young dancers’ mental health. How we perceive stress can alleviate its negative effects on mental health and well-being. If stress is, for example, appraised as a challenge rather than a threat, it can increase lived positive emotions, lower anxiety and promote well-being. Therefore, using techniques such as imagery and stress re-appraisal can possibly help dancers cope with stress more positively and promote better mental health and well-being. In addition, as intense dance school environments can potentially also influence the students’ mental health by alleviating or exacerbating stress, it seems important to additionally ensure that a positive psychological climate is created within the school to support the dancers in coping with the unique stressors they experience. The aims of the proposed research are: (i) to understand the stressors experienced by young vocational dancers; and (ii) to co-develop an intervention tailored to the needs of young vocational dancers to promote better mental health and wellbeing.

Biography

Born in Basel, Switzerland, Michelle has an MA in theatre, arts and sciences from the University in Oslo, Norway and an MAS in Dance Science from the University in Bern, Switzerland. From September 2022 she is going to pursue a Phd in Sport/ Dance psychology at the University of Birmingham in collaboration with Elmhurst Ballet School (UK). She has been working as an educator at different educational institutions in and around Oslo, Norway and is a research assistant (since 2020 to present) and guest lecturer in dance psychology (since 2021 to present) at Oslo National Academy of the Arts in Norway. In 2021 and 2022, she has published two mental health online curriculum resources for high school students in performing arts for Tell publishing company. Currently a member of the IADMS dance educator’s committee, Michelle is working closely with an international network of dancers and dance educators alike.