Plurality in Motion: Dance and Cultural Identity on the Greek Ionian Island of Lefkada

The thesis concerns the issue of dance and cultural identity on the Ionian island of Lefkada. Dance is treated as a sociocultural product which is instrumental in the construction of cultural identity and the aim of this study is to understand "Lefkadian identity" through the study of "Lefkadian dance". The rural repertoire studied presents a paradoxical situation whereby presentational (official) and participatory (unofficial) dance performances seem to bear little relation to one another. The study follows an interdisciplinary strategy that leads to a synthesis of social and dance analyses. Historical and laographic sources are used within the context of an ethnochoreological approach, which brings together contextual information and motional analysis of the dances. The dance phenomenon, embodied in a sociocultural framework, is revealed through its structural and stylistic dimensions, parameters of equal importance for the definition of a dance form. The folk-classification of the dances as "indigenous" or "foreign", along with the differing statuses afforded the genres, reveals the way the dance repertoires are manipulated by the Lefkadians. In conclusion, cultural identity is defined analytically from the dance point of view and is further examined in the wider Greek cultural frame of the "Helleno-Romeic dilemma"

Postural Balance Ability and the Effect of Visual Restriction on Older Dancers and Non-Dancers

Dance has been suggested to be an advantageous exercise modality for improving postural balance performance and reducing the risk of falls in the older population. The main purpose of this study was to investigate whether visual restriction impacts older dancers and non-dancers differently during a quiet stance balance performance test. We hypothesized higher balance performance and greater balance deterioration due to visual restriction in dancers compared with non-dancers, indicating the superior contribution of the visual channel in the expected higher balance performances of dancers. Sixty-nine (38 men, 31 women, 74 ± 6 years) healthy older adults participated and were grouped into a Greek traditional dance group (n = 31, two to three times/week for 1.5 h/session, minimum of 3 years) and a non-dancer control group (n = 38, no systematic exercise history). The participants completed an assessment of one-legged quiet stance trials using both left and right legs and with eyes open while standing barefoot on a force plate (Wii, A/D converter, 1,000 Hz; Biovision) and two-legged trials with both eyes open and closed. The possible differences in the anthropometric and one-legged balance parameters were examined by a univariate ANOVA with group and sex as fixed factors. This ANOVA was performed using the same fixed factors and vision as the repeated measures factor for the two-legged balance parameters. In the one-legged task, the dance group showed significantly lower values in anteroposterior and mediolateral sway amplitudes (p = 0.001 and p = 0.035) and path length measured in both directions (p = 0.001) compared with the non-dancers. In the two-legged stance, we found a significant vision effect on path length (p < 0.001) and anteroposterior amplitude (p < 0.001), whereas mediolateral amplitude did not differ significantly (p = 0.439) between closed and open eyes. The dance group had a significantly lower CoP path length (p = 0.006) and anteroposterior (p = 0.001) and mediolateral sway amplitudes (p = 0.003) both in the eyes-open and eyes-closed trials compared with the control group. The superior balance performance in the two postural tasks found in the dancers is possibly the result of the coordinated, aesthetically oriented intersegmental movements, including alternations between one- and two-legged stance phases, that comes with dance. Visual restriction resulted in a similar deterioration of balance performance in both groups, thus suggesting that the contribution of the visual channel alone cannot explain the superior balance performance of dancers.Peer Reviewe

THE EFFECT OF A GREEK TRADITIONAL DANCE PROGRAM ON THE MOTOR COMPETENCE OF CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER

It is usual for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to demonstrate deficits in motor behavior. Participation in movement programs has been suggested to elicit improvements in their motor competence (MC) level. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of a Greek traditional dance (GTD) program on the MC of 6-14-year-old children with ASD. The study design included eight participants (two girls, six boys), who were randomly allocated into two equal-sized groups, group A (its members participated only in the regular Physical Education lessons provided by their school) and group B (its members additionally followed an 8-week GTD program of two 40-min sessions per week). Children’s MC was assessed prior and immediately after the completion of the GTD program by the Bruininks- Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOT-2 SF). Due to study’s small sample size and participants’ heterogenous ASD characteristics, the results will be interpreted as outcomes of multiple single case studies. Overall, it was observed that the MC of all participants was considerably poor; however, members of group B made greater improvements in both the total BOT-2 point score and most item raw scores compared to those of group A, with balance and body coordination skills presenting the greater improvements. Even though the results of this study stress the positive effect of GTD on the MC of children with ASD, future studies employing wider sample sizes and/or implementing longer programs are required to further confirm its merit. Article visualizations

Τhe Effect of a Traditional Dance Program on Health-Related Quality of Life as Perceived by Primary School Students

Physical exercise is acknowledged to play a highly significant role in human health and life quality. The concept “Quality of Life” (QoL) refers to many parameters, including the individual's physical condition, psychological status, level of independence, social relationships and interaction with the environment. Participating in dance activities, and more particularly in traditional dances, can significantly increase one’s physical and psychological well-being, and therefore improve their QoL.The aim of the present study was to investigate whether there are differences in the way Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) is perceived by fifth and sixth graders of two public primary schools attending two different programs: a) program focused on traditional dance and b) program implemented within the context of the Physical Education curriculum as provided by the Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs.According to the results of the research, the traditional dance intervention program presented higher perceived HRQoL values in six of the eight dimensions of the Kidscreen-52 Questionnaire, these dimensions being "Health", "Mood", "Self-perception", "Friends", "School-Learning" and "Self & Others". The most highly statistically significant difference was found for the "Health" dimension.In conclusion, traditional dance offers multiple benefits to participants, since it is an enjoyable physical activity contributing to the improvement of many QoL-related factors