Impact of creative dance on subjective well-being amongst older adults: an arts-informed photo-elicitation study

As the popularity of dance as a health-enhancing activity for adults over the age of 65 has grown, experimental research that aims to identify the physical, psychological, and social impacts of dancing is now prevalent in academic journals. Consistently, the participant’s voice is left out of this research.

Photo-elicitation interviews were used within an arts-informed methodology. Ten female dancers aged 66–77 years who attend the same weekly, creative dance class participated.

Thematic analysis of interview transcripts revealed an overarching theme of psychosocial resilience and five sub-themes: connecting with others, challenging perceptions of aging, emotional vulnerability, the importance of creativity, and opportunity to exercise autonomy.

The results offer novel insight into the impact of creative dancing on subjective wellbeing and suggest that creative dancing can foster psychosocial resilience. The relationship between creative dance and psychosocial resilience should be explored further in other creative dance groups and older male dancers.