Association for Behavior Analysis International

Behavioral research has evaluated interventions to improve performance in a variety of sports and recreational contexts.This symposium includes four diverse empirical papers that explore the application of behaviour analysis in dance. The first will compare the effects of verbal and video feedback on the performance of beginner/intermediate level dancers. The second will investigate the impact of music choice on participants’ exercise duration in Zumba dance classes. The third will present a pilot evaluation of a recreational dance program with embedded behavior analytic components to support children with neurodevelopmental disabilities. The fourth will build on this previous presentation by discussing the facilitators and barriers of this behavior analytic informed recreational dance program for children with neurodevelopmental disabilities. Taken together, these papers will provide practical information regarding the implementation of behavior analysis in dance.

The purpose of this study was to pilot Dance with a B-E-A-T (Dance with Behavior Analysis and Therapy), a recreational dance program with embedded behavior analytic components to support children with neurodevelopmental disabilities (e.g., autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, learning disabilities). Behavioral components included evidence-based instructional modifications and motivational strategies. Four children (3 females, 1 male) between 7 and 12 years old with neurodevelopmental disabilities participated in 1-hour sessions, across 8 weeks. The percentage of correctly performed steps on a task analysis assessed children’s gross motor performance across 10 dance and balance skills. Three children participated in the post assessment and showed 33.7% improvement in their overall gross motor performance. Self-efficacy and consumer satisfaction questionnaires were also completed. Self-efficacy scores were variable, but caregivers and children reported they were very satisfied with the dance program. Results are promising and support further development of behavioral components to support recreational programming for children with neurodevelopmental disabilities.

Recreational dance programs with behavioural modifications can provide children with neurodevelopmental disabilities an opportunity to enjoy dance, which may in turn improve their motor performance, social skills, and perceived self-efficacy. Recreational programs often include multiple stakeholders, such as facilitators, participants, and caregivers. This case study builds on a pilot evaluation of Dance with a B-E-A-T (Behaviour Analysis and Therapy), a recreational dance program with behavioural modifications for children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Through semi-structured interviews with three graduate students, who served as facilitators of this dance program, we aim to understand what components of the program facilitators found contributed to the program’s success, components that they perceived to be challenging, and any successes or challenges they experienced implementing the program. Interview questions posed to facilitators were informed by an inductive thematic analysis of previously completed interviews with caregivers of former program participants. Preliminary data from facilitator interviews suggest that facilitators perceived that behavior analytic and other therapeutic components were helpful for individualizing the program for children with neurodevelopmental disabilities. Facilitators also provided recommendations (e.g., thinning the schedule of reinforcement, including reliability training for data collection) to improve future implementation of this dance program.