Authentic Movement: Clinical Considerations

Abstract

Clinical considerations of authentic movement and its contributions to dance/movement therapy are addressed in this paper. Authentic movement is discussed as an intervention or approach in dance/movement therapy and as a movement practice or discipline outside the field of dance/movement therapy. Levy's (1988) formulation of the therapist's style of intervention, the degree of therapist control, and the focus of the therapist's attention are the elements used to place authentic movement in the spectrum of dance/movement therapy practice. Conditions of safety in the use of authentic movement are considered, and clinical examples with therapeutic rationales for the use of authentic movement are presented. The ongoing practice of authentic movement is discussed in terms of its contributions to training for dance/movement therapists.