Effects of Emotional Valence, Training Experience, and Audiovisual Dual Modality on Emotion in Dance

The dance art form involves audiovisual dual modality perception, and research is unclear regarding the original accompanying music, the audience's emotional response to the dance/music, and the impact of dance training on the audiovisual dual modality recognition and experience of emotion in dance. This study is a mixed experimental design that was adopted: 2 (presentation modality: audiovisual bimodal vs. visual modality only) × 2 (dance training experience: dance major vs. non-dance major) × 2 (emotional valence: happiness vs. sadness). The results show that audiovisual dual modality significantly impacts emotional experience but not emotional recognition. Additionally, individuals’ professional experience is critical for dance's emotional recognition and experience. Dancers can recognize and appreciate dance works through a single visual mode, which non-dancers are unable to do. The results provide insights into the relationships between dance training experience, audiovisual dual modality, and dance emotion.