Emotional processes during adolescence occur in the psyche (mind) and the soma (body). This article will present a preliminary phenomenological study with 20 dance/movement therapy students. The objective of the research was to learn about adolescence through the type of emotional content that would surface as a result of movement experiences that focused on patterns of movement during adolescence. The participants were asked to move to the music that symbolized their adolescent years to them in the same way they used to move during adolescence. Based on their written reflections of the movement experience, two main themes emerged. In one, the adolescent body is experienced as a vehicle to express urges and desires, and in the other, the adolescent body is experienced in a threatening and revealing manner. These results serve as the basis for my discussion of the therapeutic technique and the somatic countertransference process in movement therapy with adolescents.
During adolescence, the transition from childhood to adulthood takes place in the psyche (mind) and the soma (body). Various theoreticians refer to the period of adolescence as an intermediate stage, a time of transition from immaturity (Winnicott, 1969) to maturity, a time of self-investigation (Noshpitz, 2011) and instability (Arnett, 2000). Two main developmental tasks during this phase are identity formation (Erikson, 1968 and Flechner, 2005) and “second individuation” (Bloss, 1967).
In addition to successfully coping with these issues, the adolescent must also cope with the appearance of secondary sexual characteristics (for example, growth of body hair, onset of menstruation, development of breasts and voice changes), changes in their body's size, structure, balance, muscle strength and the intensity of sexual and aggressive urges (Freud, 1936). Physical and emotional changes generally do not proceed at a parallel pace. The precise timing of these changes, their nature and their meaning are not known to adolescents. It is therefore without their control or volition that the familiar childish body transforms during this period into another that is unfamiliar. The body, which represents sexuality, now constitutes the source of pleasure, enjoyment, confusion, fear, panic, guilt and shame all at the same time.
In dance/movement therapy, emotional content related to the mind–body experience is processed via the body and through movement that takes place within a safe environment. Due to adolescents’ great preoccupation with the body, understanding the unique characteristics of therapy through movement and dance in adolescence is critical.
Despite this, a comprehensive review of the literature located only a few studies in the field of dance/movement therapy (DMT) that relate to the significance of body-focused emotional therapy during adolescence (Block, 2001, Eke and Gent, 2010 and Groenlund et al., 2006). In this context, an understanding of the significance of the experience of movement for the therapeutic process is lacking, as is an understanding of the processes in the therapeutic relationship. That is, by means of the countertransference and projective identification processes that take place during movement, the dance therapist confronts early experiences from her own adolescence. The present article presents preliminary research with 20 DMT students. The research examined psycho-somatic content resulting from experiential movement focused on the participants’ experiences from adolescence. Two central themes were identified and will constitute the basis for the discussion regarding the uniqueness of movement therapy for adolescents.
