Undergraduate Research in Dance: Contributions to the Second Edition

Researcher(s)

  • Marissa Jackson, Public Policy, University of Delaware

Faculty Mentor(s)

  • Lynnette Overby, Theatre, University of Delaware

Abstract

The purpose of my project was to review and organize abstracts to potentially be used to update the 2018 edition of Undergraduate Research in Dance by Dr. Lynnette Overby, Jenny Olin Shanahan, and Gregory Young.  As well as adding more links for the last chapter, online resources.This book guides students through the fundamentals of research methods, providing a foundation to help get started in understanding research protocols and processes. 

In a shared Google Drive, I made folders based on the chapter titles to establish the abstracts appropriate location. Those chapters include dance science, dance education, interdisciplinary, and international. These abstracts were pulled from many sources including the National Council of Undergraduate Research and the UD Undergrad Capstone. We were able to collect 13 abstracts, with each chapter having at least one. For online resources, I reviewed each link to make sure it worked and found more links that could be used. I found 4 new links to add including a link to take online dance classes. In addition, I decided to add a social media section to the chapter as a way to show the growing influence technology has on art. I found that social media not only helps dancers see new ways of moving and digesting dance content, but also helps dancers connect with each other, forming new communities. Overall, Undergraduate Research in Dance is important because it shows students how they too can be independent scholars, answering their own questions and using their knowledge of gathering research to come to conclusions. As an undergraduate dancer, this research has made me more appreciative of the different lenses dance can be viewed under and made me want to look deeper into the dance-related topics I want to learn more about.