2021.05 61-2 The Process Study of Experiential Approach Warm-up — Using Body Warm-up Activities in Psychodrama

This study aimed at revealing the experiential structure of participants in experiential approach warm-up. Experiential approach warm-up is based on phenomenology, experiential therapy, and the concept of authentic movement. The researchers reviewed the warm-up theory of psychodrama, the body experience in phenomenology, experiential approach, and the concept of authentic movement. In the experiential approach warm-up, there were some body warm-up activities, including body movement, meditation, role play, concretization.
  In the study, the researcher used the paradigm of hermeneutic phenomenology. The five selected participants were assessed by two psychodrama expert as "spontaneous participants" according to the five dimensions of the spontaneity (Lai, 2017). The five participants were all women between 22 and 50 years old, and their Psychodrama training hours ranged from 70 to 280 hours. After the group, the researcher asked the five participants to write down their experience after participating in body warm-up activities. Phenomenological analysis (Lee & Lai, 2009) was applied to the descriptions of experience obtained from five participants after they attended experiential approach warm-up. The experiential structure of participants in experiential approach warmup were obtained. Two main findings were obtained. (1) The experiential structure of warm-up in psychodrama consisted of two dimensions of behaviors. One was the vertical dimension, indicating the words-bodily feelings connection: participants were warmed up through bodily activities and participants experienced themselves. The other was the horizontal dimension, indicating the interpersonal verbal and nonverbal communication Repetitive in group. Participants' bodily feelings were aroused and participants experienced themselves. (2) The experiential structure of warm-up included 4 structures: (a) When group members just came into the group, group members felt  confused, were distant from the group and were struggling to be the Protagonist. (b) Through the mutual sharing, support and interaction between group members, group members felt supported and relaxed, and they could participate in the group psychologically. (c) When members saw or heard others’ sharing, member experienced themselves, understood themselves and others, and thought of some life events. There are two subthemes in the structure. One is "members saw or heard other's sharing-body feelings-understood themselves and others", the other is "members shared their experience or heard others' sharings-body feelings-think of life events-awareness". (d) members used body warm-up activities (body movement, meditation, role play, concretization) to do warm-up, members can experience themselves, think of life events and experience themselves. There are three subthemes in the structure. The first is "body movement-the touch of the body-body feelings-experience themselves". The second is "body warm-up activities (body movement, meditation, role play)-body feelings-think of life eventsawareness". The third is "body warm-up activities (body movement, meditation, concretization)-body feelingsawareness".
  In the study, the researcher discussed the relationship between body warm-up experience and spontaneity and the mechanism of experiential approach warm-up. The mechanism of experiential warm-up is : (1) the verbal and nonverbal behavior between members evoke the body experience of members and facilitate spontaneity. (2) body warm-up activities help members being here-and-now and prepare for being the protagonist. Through this study, various significant features regarding experiential approach warm-up were clarified. The study helps to understand the experience of participating in body warm-up activities. However, the findings may not apply to other types of warm-up; not can the study explain the experience of the participants who are in low spontaneity.

Keywords
Body warm-up activities, experiential approach warm up, hermeneutic phenomenology, psychodrama

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