Are dancers more emotionally intelligent and self-regulated than non-dancers?

Abstract

Dance is a creative avenue for self-expression, through which dancers express their feelings; it may help develop their empathetic skills required to perceive and understand emotions. This study aimed to empirically examine the effects of dance and dance achievement on emotional intelligence and emotion regulation. Participants were 280 women between the ages of 18–28 living in Australia; 157 had varying dance backgrounds whereas 123 were non-dancers. Participants completed the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. Results showed that the dancers emotional intelligence score was significantly greater than the non-dancers (p < .05). There were no differences between the groups in emotion-regulation scores, neither in reappraisal nor suppression scores. Results of one-way ANOVAs showed emotional intelligence scores were higher (p < .001) and reappraisal scores were lower (p < .05) as a function of dance achievement. There was no relationship between suppression and dance achievement. Findings provide preliminary support that dance may increase emotional intelligence.