Dancers’ Body: The Examination of Health, Body Satisfaction, Body Attitudes, Eating Attitudes, and Self-Esteem among Dancers

Abstract

Objective: to conduct research on health state, body satisfaction, eating disorders (EDs), body investments, and self-esteem among adult dancers. Methods: General Health Questionnaire, WHO Well-Being Index, Body Satisfaction Scale, Human Figure Drawing Test, Body Investment Scale, Eating Attitudes Test, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Results: 45.8% of female and 21.2% of male dancers have significant symptoms/ diseases. 7.4% of females are underweight, besides 5.9% of females and 15.6% of males are overweight. 11.6% of females are at risk for EDs. Ballroom dancers are the most dissatisfied with their body and weight, and they are the most symptomatic concerning EDs. Modern dancers are the most protected regarding body-related extremes. Female dancers under 20 have stricter body evaluation, less body protection, more bulimic symptoms, and less self-esteem. Conclusions: An intervention programme should be implemented in dance education that provides both theoretical and practical knowledge with the participation of experts in the field of health, education, and child care as well. This may help dancers to improve health, endurance, body image, and self-esteem. The prevention of EDs must be a priority in this initiative.

Do Iranian Female Dancers Face a Risk of Chronic Negative Energy Balance? A Study on Energy Intake and Expenditure Among Non-professional Female Dancers

“…Body dissatisfaction is common among dancers of all ages, often leading to a distorted body image, which in extreme cases can progress into a body image disorder (24). Moreover, eating disorders are prevalent among these athletes, with a reported lifetime prevalence of 50% among professional dancers and up to 26.5% among young dancers (25). In a recent cross-sectional study involving 124 national professional dance students from Norway, 50% of participants self-reported mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, body image concerns, and eating disorders (26).…”

Body Anxiety in Female Dancers

“…This demonstrates that physical causes are inevitable and when female dancers realise their weight gain, they are prone to be overwhelmed and feel anxious [6][7][8][9]. Furthermore, female dancers in adulthood also face the corresponding body anxiety that comes with age, as it is dancers' constant goal to maintain an ideal weight to conform to the aesthetic of the body on stage (Krakkóné Szászi & Szabó, 2021). This indicates that female dancers will be beset by weight and demanding of their bodies throughout their lives.…”

“…The negative emotion leads them to continuously assess and demand more of themselves. Thus, dancers may develop body anxiety when they fail to achieve the ideal body image [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17].…”

“…As they generally tend to be more highly conscious of their body image and also strive for a slimmer figure. Anxiety can arise when dancers are unsatisfied with their bodies (Krakkóné Szászi & Szabó, 2021). For female dancers, body image anxiety is one of the most common psychological problems that occur [1][2][3][4][5].…”

Professzionális táncosok mentális jóllétének és megküzdési módjainak vizsgálata a Covid-19 okozta karantén idején

“…A táncosnak készülő gyermekek és serdülők körében is gyakori, hogy a testhez való viszony a megvonással, szinten tartással és ezekből kifolyólag sok szorongással kapcsolódik össze (Szászi & Szabó, 2021). A táncosok sok esetben az előírtnál jóval több gyakorlatot végeznek annak érdekében, hogy több kalóriát égessenek el (Robbeson, Kruger & Wright, 2013).…”