A Meta-Ethnographic Study of the Psychological Impact of Dance Injuries. / Victoria Miles (2021)

It is evident from previous dance-specific research that injury occurrence has a psychological impact on the injured individual, however, despite this being a highly relevant topic within the field of dance, there is a lack of recent published research exploring this. The purpose of this research was therefore to review, synthesise and offer new interpretations of unpublished research findings that focus on the psychological impact of injury to identify (1) the psychological responses to injury, (2) predominant coping strategies post-injury, and (3) the influence of psychological factors in rehabilitation by application of a meta-ethnography methodology. A systematic literature search was conducted between May 2021 and July 2021 using a variety of databases specifically selected for a comprehensive search in the relevant fields. Key search terms included dance, injury, psychology, psychological, impact, recovery, coping, management, qualitative and mixed methods. Literature collected was independently screened for relevance before the remaining studies were assessed against the selection criteria (Appendix A). A total of 10 articles were in the final selection for thematic analysis, which was conducted using reciprocal translation to identify key concepts and themes. Three overarching themes were formed from thematic analysis: emotional response, coping and management strategies, and environmental influences. Findings from synthesis of data discovered that the psychological responses to injury are complex and multidimensional, varying throughout the post-injury process in relation to personal, situational, and environmental factors. Initially, injured dancers tend to experience less-desirable emotional responses (e.g., fear, anger, depression, self-doubt), with the integration of more-desirable emotions (e.g., optimism, happiness, hope) emerging as they develop through the process. Predominant coping strategies found were avoidance, seeking knowledge, social support, remaining connected with dance, and psychological skills. Application and benefits of these coping strategies was varied and influenced by accessibility to healthcare, relationships with others, and dance culture. Findings supported previous research and brought further context and comprehensive knowledge of the topic, in addition to providing new insights. Further research is necessary to broaden research in this topic, and to establish how we can practically apply this knowledge to dance, in order to efficiently support dancers postinjury.