The Role of Dance/Movement Therapy in the Treatment of Negative Syndrome and Psychosocial Functioning of Patients with Schizophrenia: A Pilot Study

Optimizing psychosocial functioning and overall well-being by reducing the severity of negative symptoms are important outcomes for individuals with schizophrenia. Movement-based therapeutic approaches are uniquely capable of addressing the non-verbal nature of negative symptoms. Dance/movement therapy, a promising treatment for mental health conditions such as schizophrenia, has been found to reduce the occurrence and severity of negative symptoms and have a positive impact on psychosocial functioning. Although preliminary findings suggest dance/movement therapy as a treatment intervention, limited research and inconclusive findings preclude generalizations and more research is needed. This pilot's study overall goal was to determine if dance/movement therapy intervention is effective in the treatment of negative symptoms and psychosocial functioning in individuals with schizophrenia. Specific aims were: (1) to examine the effects of a 10-week group dance/movement treatment program on negative symptoms in schizophrenia, (2) to gain greater understanding of participants' perceptions of the intervention, (3) to use participants' feedback of the intervention to better understand its impact, and (4) to examine the feasibility of the treatment procedures and research protocol. This pilot study employed a mixed methods intervention design with explanatory intent, in which a randomized controlled trial was followed by semi-structured exit interviews. Participants, severely ill individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia (N = 31), were randomized to two conditions: Dance/Movement Therapy and Treatment as Usual groups using simple randomization method. Participants reported on negative symptoms and psychosocial functioning outcomes prior to and after the program. Qualitative semi-structured exit interviews were conducted with participants who attended at least 50% of the dance/movement therapy sessions (n = 15). The quantitative data showed no improvement of outcomes in the DMT condition. The qualitative data suggests that treatment resulted in enhanced interpersonal connectivity, self-integration, emotional support, symptoms management and had physical impact on participants. The study feasibility findings also suggest that study procedures were feasible at this setting and that treatment was well accepted by the participants. These findings suggest that manualized DMT treatment protocol specifically developed for this study was successfully implemented and could be easily implemented in a larger, multi-site, clinical trial allowing for study replication. The findings of this study contribute to knowledge about body-based interventions for schizophrenia. The current lack of clear evidence for the efficacy of dance/movement therapy in reduction of severity of negative symptoms and improvement of psychosocial functioning redirects thinking about methodological facets of both research and practice.Ph.D., Creative Arts in Therapy -- Drexel University, 201