5 Annotated Bibliographies

Robbeson, Justine G., et al. "Disordered Eating Behavior, Body Image, and Energy Status of Female Student Dancers." International Journal of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism, vol. 25, no. 4, Aug. 2015, pp. 344-352. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=109423791&site=eds-live.

Justine G. Robbeson, Herculina Salome Kruger, and Hattie H. Wright are with the Facility of Health Sciences. Robbeson, Kruger, and Wright did an experiment with volunteer dancers and researched the habits of dancers. Robbeson and Kruger work with the Faculty of Health Sciences, Centre of Excellence for Nutrition, Potchefstroom, South Africa. Wright works with the School of Health and Sport Sciences, University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. The authors study the common idea of thinness. They found that dancers are significantly more at risk for developing eating disorders by a factor of over two thirds. They also studied the energy deficits that come with these disorders in dancers by using a formula.

The eating disorders were assessed with Eating Disorder Inventory-3 and the Cognitive Dietary Restraint subscale of the Three-factor Eating Questionnaire. This includes factors such as drive for thinness, body dissatisfaction, bulimia levels, and more, where “main findings of this study were that more than two thirds of dancers were identified as at risk for disordered eating behavior”. It also stated that the expectation for low body weight is low, stating that “dancers had a significantly lower desired body weight than controls”.

This source agrees with my other research and my question as it shows the strong connection between dance and eating disorders. With the source relating to the influence of perfectionism by Jon Arelus, Milagrosa Sanchez-Martin, and Carmen Del Rio, they touched on the idea of high rates of body dissatisfaction, which is also prevalent in this source. The source is all factual based, but I believe the authors opinions would be concerned towards the high numbers of mental and physical health deficits. Many other authors also state the alarmingly high rates of eating disorders, and the experiments coincide. I believe this is a good source to base factual based opinions on.

Arcelus, Jon, et al. "Influence of Perfectionism on Variables Associated to Eating Disorders in Dance Students." ["INFLUENCIA DEL PERFECCIONISMO EN VARIABLES RELACIONADAS CON TRASTORNOS ALIMENTARIOS EN ESTUDIANTES DE DANZA"]. Revista De Psicología Del Deporte, vol. 24, no. 2, July 2015, pp. 297-303. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=109283444&site=eds-live.

This article is written by Jon Arelus, Milagrosa Sanchez-Martin, and Carmen Del Rio, researchers with a Spanish Sports Psychology Magazine. This article discusses the idea of perfectionism in dancers, and how they always strive to be the best and look the best, and have "an internal motivation to set and strive for achieving high goals". This often leads to eating disorders in dancers. The article states how body dissatisfaction and perfectionism leads to anxiety and depression, which causes a change in dieting.

A study was done on Spanish dancers assessing them on perfectionism, anxiety, body dissatisfaction, eating habits, and symptoms of depression, and it was found that there is a direct correlation between dieting and mood disorders. A risk model was constructed for dancers and it was tested on a sample. The results agreed with the model in the fact that there is a strong correlation. It is known that “correlations between body dissatisfaction, depression, and food restriction were also high”. It is also stated that dancers have a "three times higher risk of suffering from eating disorders".

This article agrees with "Fatigue and Symptoms of Eating Disorders in Professional Dancers” in stating that there is a direct correlation between dance and eating disorders. This source is the first one to bring up the idea of perfectionism, though others have suggested theories like it. These authors feel the correlation is very strong. This source has a good diagram for the relationship of dieting, depression, anxiety, etc.

Feitosa Rodrigues, Yasmin Cristina, et al. "Fatigue and Symptoms of Eating Disorders in Professional Dancers. / Fadiga E Sintomas De Transtornos Alimentares Em Bailarinos Profissionais." Brazilian Journal of Kineanthropometry & Human Performance, vol. 19, no. 1, Jan. 2017, pp. 96-107. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=123334819&site=eds-live.

This article was written by Feitosa Rodrigues and Yasmin Cristina from the Brazilian Journal of Kineanthropometry & Human Performance. This article discusses both the mental and physical tolls that dance can have on professional dancers. It argues that not only does dance often lead to eating disorders but also muscle fatigue. This article touches on the fact that there is a connection between their exhaustion and mental state, stating that “due to the high level of demand on their bodies, it is common to increase even more the training level, with the intention of burning more calories, harming their health by using inadequate and dangerous ways to achieve the body of dreams.”

A study was done on dancers from Brazil who were given questionnaires frequently used to identify subjects with eating disorders. BMI was also calculated. The results showed that eating disorders were prevalent in dancers, but mostly female dancers. The results also showed that “among ideal weight dancers, 82.4% had symptoms [of anorexia nervosa].” It was also concluded that “even with thin bodies, professional dancers tend to restrict their energy consumption, leading to eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia nervosa.” Conclusions also lead to “a relationship between fatigue and symptoms of bulimia nervosa.”

This source agrees with my other research and furthers the idea that there is a strong link between dance and eating disorders. This source agrees with the source "Disordered Eating Behavior, Body Image, and Energy Status of Female Student Dancers” in the sense that they both did a study on direct correlations between the two, and the results were very similar. This source is different because it discusses fatigue and exhaustion.

van Staden, Antoinette, et al. "A Psycho-Educational Model to Enhance the Self-Development and Mental Health of Classical Dancers." Journal of Dance Medicine & Science, vol. 13, no. 1, Feb. 2009, pp. 20-28. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=37247998&site=eds-live.

This article was written by Antoinette van Staden with the Journal of Dance Medicine & Science. Van Staden is a dance teacher and researcher, as well as a director of a South African youth ballet company. This article aims to answer the question “How can pre-professional classical dancers (normally between 11 and l8 years of age) be assisted in promoting their mental health, balanced functioning, and self-actualization as individuals and as artistic performers?”. This article explores self identity, perfectionism, lack of support, and pressures that dancers face.

This article studies nine principal dancers from two different ballet companies and conducted interviews based on their experiences. It also discusses how dancers fall in a downward spiral of mental illnesses, stating that “dancers are particularly prone to problems involving self-esteem, perfectionism, body image, and eating disorders.” It also provides personal testimonies from dancers as they show how vicious dance is, claiming that “as you rise through the ranks less and less people become a support system. People will put you down. There was a certain jealousy coming out.” From these testimonies, the authors created a psychoeducational model to show the relationship between mental illnesses and creating a trusting environment.

This article differs from the others in the sense that it focuses more on mental health in general rather than strictly eating disorders. It is similar to the article Influence of Perfectionism on Variables Associated to Eating Disorders in Dance Students in the sense that it discusses the idea of perfectionism. This is a good source for personal testimonies and for exploring not only just eating disorders, but mental hardships in general which can lead to mental illnesses. It is also different than the other sources in the sense that it provides a solution to these eating disorders.

Danis, Ajua. “Body Image Perceptions among Dancers in Urban Environmental Settings.”Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, Elsevier, 5 July 2016, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042816302713?via%3Dihub.

This article was written by Ajua Danis with the Basic Science Department at Universiti Teknologi MARA. This article highlights the intense body image standards for dancers, and the pressures of being thin. As explained by the author, “the dancer’s body dissatisfaction is influenced by the cut-throat culture of the dancing world.” Danis describes the rising amount of body dissatisfaction in dancers, and the connection between their BMI.

In a study done with 155 dancers, BMI was recorded for each dancer, as well as their body image perceptions. It was determined that “among those who are in an ideal body mass index, the result shows that 31.9% did not satisfy with their body image”. Of the overall study, 30% of all dancers felt dissatisfied with their bodies. The author also states that “dancers also found to be more concerned about their physical appearance and weight.” It also shows the dancers BMI in their respective categories.

A disadvantage to this article is that it states the reason for body dissatisfaction is unknown, whereas the other articles, like "Influence of Perfectionism on Variables Associated to Eating Disorders in Dance Students” where is states specific reason that dancers adapt eating disorders. This article is good for raw information on BMI and body dissatisfaction.