The pressure to succeed - promoting mental health and well-being in young vocational dancers

一项针对舞蹈专业学生的研究发现，45%的参与舞者在一个学年中至少有一次心理健康问题，而30%的人认为心理健康问题是他们最严重的健康问题(van Winden等人)。2019年)。来自不同来源的压力增加，如父母压力、学业压力和与同龄人有关的压力，可能会导致精神健康状况不佳。此外，紧张的职场舞蹈环境似乎还带来了一系列独特的压力，可能会对学生的心理健康和幸福感产生负面影响。然而，我们对这些压力源及其对年轻舞者心理健康的影响知之甚少。我们如何看待压力可以减轻它对心理健康和幸福的负面影响。例如，如果压力被评估为一种挑战，而不是威胁，它可以增加生活中的积极情绪，降低焦虑，促进幸福感。因此，使用意象和压力重新评估等技术可能有助于舞者更积极地应对压力，并促进更好的心理健康和福祉。此外，由于紧张的舞蹈学校环境也可能通过缓解或加剧压力来影响学生的心理健康，因此似乎有必要确保在学校内创造积极的心理氛围，以支持舞者应对他们所经历的独特压力源。总而言之，了解职业芭蕾舞演员的压力相关经历并支持他们克服压力是很重要的。然而，据我们所知，没有针对年轻职业舞者特定需求的干预措施，这使得他们容易受到心理健康问题的影响。因此，这个项目的主要目标是：找出年轻职业舞者在整个职业培训过程中经历的压力源共同开发一种干预措施，教舞者重新评估压力，在学校创造积极的心理氛围，促进职业舞者的心理健康方法和技术。这个合作项目将在Elmhurst芭蕾舞学校进行，这是一所独立的职业舞蹈学校，面向11-19岁有志成为专业舞者的舞者。这所学校的特点将使干预措施的设计和实施成为可能，其目的是在舞蹈环境中调节压力和增强心理氛围。将使用以下混合方法来解决该项目的目标：将与舞者和教师一起使用问卷和焦点小组，以确定所经历的可能影响舞者心理健康的特定压力源。将与Elmhurst芭蕾舞学校的舞者和老师共同制定一项干预措施，重点是如何调节压力和创造积极的心理氛围。将采用定性和定量相结合的方法评估干预的可行性和有效性。

Findings in a study on dance students points to that 45% of the participating dancers suffered from at least one mental health issue during an academic year while 30% reported a mental health issue as their most severe health problem (van Winden et al. 2019). Poor mental health can arise through increasing stress resulting from different sources, such as parental, academic, and peer-related pressures. The often intense, vocational dance environments seem, additionally, to present a unique set of pressures which could have a negative impact on students' mental health and well-being. Yet, we know little about these stressors and their influence on young dancers' mental health. How we perceive stress can alleviate its negative effects on mental health and well-being. If stress is, for example, appraised as a challenge rather than a threat, it can increase lived positive emotions, lower anxiety and promote well-being. Therefore, using techniques such as imagery and stress re-appraisal can possibly help dancers cope with stress more positively and promote better mental health and well-being. In addition, as intense dance school environments can potentially also influence the students' mental health by alleviating or exacerbating stress, it seems important to additionally ensure that a positive psychological climate is created within the school to support the dancers in coping with the unique stressors they experience. In sum, understanding the stress-related experiences of vocational ballet dancers and supporting them in overcoming stress is important. However, to our knowledge, no intervention exists that is tailored to the specific needs of young vocational dancers, leaving them vulnerable to mental health problems. Therefore, the broad aims of this project are to: Identify stressors experienced by young vocational dancers throughout vocational trainingCo-develop an intervention that teaches dancers to re-appraise stress, create a positive psychological climate in the school and promote better mental health in vocational dancers Methodology and TechniquesThis collaborative project will be conducted at Elmhurst Ballet School, an independent vocational dance school for dancers aged 11-19 who aspire to become professional dancers. The characteristics of this school will enable the design and implementation of the intervention which aims to regulate stress and enhance the psychological climate in a dance setting. The following mixed-methods approach will be used to address the project's objectives:Questionnaires and focus groups will be used with dancers and teachers to identify specific stressors experienced which could potentially influence dancers' mental health. An intervention will be co-developed with input from dancers and teachers at Elmhurst Ballet School, which will focus on ways to regulate stress and create a positive psychological climate. The feasibility and effectiveness of the intervention will be evaluated using qualitative and quantitative methods.