Elite Ballet Dancers And Body Perception Thesis Statement

Problem Statement

The manner in which ballet dancers view their own bodies has a tremendous impact on their psychological health as much as their physical. The proposed research will expand the findings from previous studies and will investigate and build upon the perceptions that ballet dancers display concerning their bodies. The central focus will be aimed at understanding the psychological variables that can affect their physical stature. The actual physical characteristics will be measured by observing height, weight, waist, hip, and bust lines.
The desired result will focus upon dancers that fall between the ages of 18 and 30. These individuals will also be allowed to describe their own perception of their body image in relation to their ideals. In turn this study will further examine the insights that professional ballet dancers hold to concerning their body composition and the resulting emotional responses that are felt in relation to what their ideal appearance is versus the reality of their current body image.

Hypotheses

Professional ballet dancers struggle constantly with the issue of their ideal body image vs. their actual body image.

Defining Variables

Independent: Professional ballet dancers’ actual physical body composition vs. their ideal body composition.

Categorical (moderator): Professional female ballet dancers will range from age 18 to 30.

The expected professional careers start from age eighteen and last approximately until age thirty.
Dependent: Ballet dancers’ perception of their body image.
Control: Study will be done on ballet dancers who are currently in professional companies.
Extraneous: The answers given by the ballet dancers during their interview time are not controlled nor is it proven to be truthful or attainable.
Develop two operational definitions: Self-image-the reality of their true image vs. their ideal image.
Body Image: The dancers’ measurements (actual body image) vs. what they want their body to look like (ideal image).
Two assumptions: Assuming the dancers are answering the questionnaires truthfully. Assuming the ballet dancers have been dancing professionally for at least three plus years.
Two limitations: The study will be done only on professional ballet dancers. The study will examine only female dancers. Some ballet dancers start their professional careers from a younger age and each dancer retires at different age.
Two delimitation: The study will not include any other dance forms/styles. The age will range from 18-30.