Working with withdrawn adolescents as a moving experience: A community resourced project exploring the usefulness of group dance movement psychotherapy within a school setting

Abstract

This paper reports on work with groups in secondary schools in the UK using dance movement psychotherapy techniques. This is an innovative way of working in the educational setting, targeting students who find it hard to verbalise thoughts and feelings and who are unable to access help for themselves. These students often have emotional difficulties which manifest themselves in withdrawn, depressed, or unduly passive behaviour. Such young people, in avoiding attention, can sometimes be more at risk of low self esteem, social isolation, and poor body image, and their difficulties may lead to academic underachievement. The objective of this group project was that, using movement within a safe group environment, we might provide an early intervention through which the withdrawn young person could engage creatively in a process of development and growth. Such a category of students might be less likely than others to self refer for counselling. However because schools provide a ready-made universal constituency for preventative mental health work, there is the opportunity to proactively engage these young people in valuable therapeutic work. The project was planned for secondary school children in the UK National Curriculum Keystage 3 (11–13 years old) a vital age (and window of opportunity) for early intervention.