As a dancer, one is forced to utilize the body they were born with to meet the standards and expectations of peers and mentors alike. The human body is built to move, but often not in
the way that dancers idolize. Hard working dancers believe they are divine and can push their body to any length they wish. They are infamous for fighting nature in arching their spines far more than natural or pushing the outward rotation of their acetabulofemoral (hip) joints past their threshold. In this context, the common dancer can be described as holding an internal locus of control.
I would like to research the interconnecting worlds of psychology, kinesiology, and physical movement on one’s body. I hope to learn about the physiological and psychological causes and effects on dancers. I want to choreograph a dance piece as part of my research. I hope to embody my findings in the dancers’ movement, as well as utilize the choreographic process as a lab to analyze my dancers and how they think locus of control affects them personally. I want to explore the effects of our mentality and psyche on our bodies in physical movement. I believe there is a correlate between the two and I want to investigate what scientists believe is the favorable outlook in comparison to an artist’s view.