Harrison Carly, Ruddock-Hudson Mandy
School of Psychology and Public Health, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia, School of Psychology and Public Health, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Victoria, 3086 Australia;, Email:
School of Psychology and Public Health, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia.
J Dance Med Sci. 2017 Jun 15;21(2):43-52. doi: 10.12678/1089-313X.21.2.43.
Dancers are often referred to as "athletes of the arts," and like other athletes they undergo years of hard physical training in pursuit of excellence. Previous research has indicated that dancers develop high pain thresholds and push past their pain barriers. This has potential implications for their health and wellbeing in both their professional careers and life after dance. Therefore, the purpose of this pilot study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of injury, pain, and retirement among professional dancers. Twenty professional dancers, 10 from the United Kingdom and Canada, hereafter referred to as "international," and 10 from Australia participated in a semi-structured interview reflecting on their experiences of the aforementioned issues. The following themes were identified: 1. the injured dancer: the reality; 2. dancers' perceptions and experiences of pain; 3. the transition leading to retirement; and 4. life after dance: attributes facilitating career change. Results from both Australian and international dancers revealed that they withstand, manage, and dance through persistent levels of pain and injury. All participants reported that they were highly motivated and dedicated to their dance careers; however, the majority of Australian dancers were not adequately prepared for, or aware of, the challenges of transition into their post-professional dance lives when compared to the international dancers. Dancer transition organizations currently operate in America, the Netherlands, Canada, and the United Kingdom and serve as valuable models that could be replicated in Australia. The current study recommends increased awareness of pain management and injury prevention strategies for dancers and further supports the rationale for development and implementation of transition models for dancers in Australia and elsewhere.
舞者常被称为“艺术领域的运动员”，和其他运动员一样，他们要经历多年艰苦的体能训练以追求卓越。先前的研究表明，舞者会形成较高的疼痛阈值，并突破自身的疼痛障碍。这对他们职业生涯以及舞蹈生涯后的健康和幸福都有潜在影响。因此，这项初步研究的目的是探索职业舞者对受伤、疼痛和退役的看法及经历。20名职业舞者参与了半结构化访谈，反思他们在上述问题上的经历，其中10名来自英国和加拿大（以下简称“国际组”），10名来自澳大利亚。确定了以下主题：1. 受伤的舞者：现实情况；2. 舞者对疼痛的看法和经历；3. 导致退役的转变；4. 舞蹈生涯后的生活：有助于职业转变的因素。澳大利亚和国际组舞者的结果都显示，他们在持续的疼痛和伤病中坚持、应对并继续跳舞。所有参与者都表示他们对舞蹈事业积极性很高且全身心投入；然而，与国际组舞者相比，大多数澳大利亚舞者对向职业舞蹈生涯后的转变所面临的挑战没有充分准备或认识不足。舞者过渡组织目前在美国、荷兰、加拿大和英国开展工作，是很有价值的模式，可在澳大利亚复制。当前研究建议提高舞者对疼痛管理和伤病预防策略的认识，并进一步支持在澳大利亚及其他地方为舞者开发和实施过渡模式的基本原理。
