Affect regulation and the therapeutic movement relationship in dance movement therapy: a scoping review

Affect Regulation (AR) refers to the capacity to manage emotional states to meet personal needs and adapt to the environment. In Dance Movement Therapy (DMT), AR is thought to be improved through the Therapeutic Movement Relationship (TMR). A scoping review of the DMT literature was conducted to identify how TMR and AR were conceptualised and how their interrelationship was described. Searches in PubMed, PsycINFO, and EMBASE (December 2024) identified 187 unique records, of which six met the inclusion criteria. No controlled or quantitative outcome studies were identified. Content analysis identified two AR sub-themes, ‘emotion regulation’ and ‘tension regulation’, as well as two TMR sub-themes, ‘therapist’s physical presence and body attitude’ and ‘therapist’s relation to own body sensations’. TMR was identified as a foundation for therapeutic change. However, terminology and conceptual definitions varied considerably, revealing inconsistency. Further research is recommended to operationalise TMR and its relation to affective change processes in DMT.