Action research about psychoeducation for self-efficacy in dance students

The aim of this pilot study was to assess how professional dance students in Higher Education can raise their self-efficacy through a programme of psychoeducation and a series of interactive group sessions. This is a convergent mixed-methods design that collects qualitative and quantitative data concurrently. It combines an explanation of Albert Bandura’s self-efficacy with Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP) Cycle of Belief and goal setting (Well-Formed Outcomes, WFO), in a series of workshops and interactive group reflective sessions. Thirty-two students over 18 years old participated in this research which was conducted at the Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance over six months in 2023. Quantitative data were analysed using One-Way MANOVA, which revealed a significant improvement in the General Self-Efficacy Scale, a moderate improvement in the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale, and a small improvement in The Brief Resilience Scale. Qualitative data, analysed using thematic analysis, suggested a wide and decisive change among students. The strong mutual effectiveness of mastery experiences was enhanced by the following three themes: positive/effective self-talk, WFOs, and interactive group sessions.