IADMS London 2003   [back to the Category]

A Descriptive Kinematic Analysis of Core Stability in Beginning and Elite Collegiate Dancers   [read the french version]

Author :   Steven J. Chatfield, PhD

A Descriptive Kinematic Analysis of Core Stability in Beginning and Elite Collegiate Dancers

Steven J. Chatfield, PhD, Dept. of Dance, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA
Donna Krasnow, MS, Dept. of Dance, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

This kinematic study analyzes verticality and core stability during dance movements. A within-subjects design was used to generate comprehensive kinematic profiles for 3 expert and 3 beginning collegiate dancers aged 28 ±6.0 and 19 ±0.6 years respectively.

Displacement data of light reflective markers were collected at 120 Hz with a 4 camera Peak Motus 3.1 Motion Analysis System. A series of markers was used to compute overall verticality, a spinal angle, and pelvic tilt. Data were collected for 15 trials of three different movements involving a vertically aligned torso on a one legged balance before and after a forward step. All testing was repeated a second day to assess test-retest stability.

Ensemble averages of 15 trials per day were used to generate continuous graphic representations of changes throughout each movement in verticality, spinal angle, and pelvic tilt for each subject. Inspection of the descriptive statistics and graphs confirmed day-to-day stability in the performances of all subjects.

The largest difference located was the experts’ ability to maintain vertical. In all instances, experts were more vertical than beginners at the start, during, and after the movement. Experts typically displayed fewer movement units than the beginners, i.e., the beginners’ movements oscillated back and forth, whereas the experts’ movements proceeded more smoothly in one direction.

This finding supports other recent kinematic work in dance. Surprisingly, when compared to beginners, experts demonstrated similar or greater magnitudes of change for each variable. These results locate differences between experts and beginners, and illuminate the dynamic nature of core stability for maintenance of verticality while dancing.

This prototypic work and further applications of similar kinematic research in dance hold promise for informing educational practice, analyzing effects of training, and monitoring rehabilitation from injury.