Assessing dance movement therapy in Chinese undergraduates with depression and anxiety: An initial randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Mental health problems, especially depression and anxiety, are becoming increasingly prominent among college students, which negatively affects academic achievement and physical and mental health. To address this issue, this study introduced dance movement therapy (DMT) to a group of Chinese university students - a group never addressed in DMT research. Addressing the gap, this randomized controlled trial evaluates DMT's effectiveness in reducing depressive and anxious symptoms in thirty-six students. Over a concise three-day program, participants engaged in 18 h of structured DMT, exploring twelve themes, while counterparts in the control group awaited treatment. Outcomes were promising:students undergoing DMT showed marked improvements in mental health measures immediately following therapy, and these benefits for intervention group were maintained after three months. Significantly, the treatment's positive effects were consistent across genders, showcasing DMT's broad potential. This initial investigation suggests DMT is a promising avenue for mental health management in Chinese undergraduates, calling for further trials with larger cohorts and longer observation to confirm and extend these findings.