Ethics 5B AND 5C

Reading up about ethics made me think back to my Religious Studies A level that I carried out as we studied Ethics as one of the topics.

Theoretical approaches to ethics really interests me. 

• Consequentialism- Act is only good if it maximises the good. Depends on the outcome (JS Mill and Jeremy Bentham) 
• Deontology- The motive behind an action determine whether or  not it is morally right. (Immanuel Kant) 
• Virtue Ethics- emphasises the character of the moral agent rather than the rules or consequences. what the action reveals about you. (Plato and Aristotle) 

Looking at these approaches from a dance teachers point of view i came up with this example: 

A teacher making a student sit out as they are being disruptive to the class. If i was the teacher in this class and child was being disruptive sitting them out may maximise the good of the overall class, this would be taking a consequentialism view. However someone who follows the Deontology approach may argue that it is not morally right to make that child sit out. Virtue Ethics may conclude that you are willing to sacrifice one child's learning for others, does this make you a bad person? 

This opened up my eyes to appreciate more how everyone has different beliefs and values and as a professional you must respect these at all times. 

In this industry ethics comes into respecting performance choices and choreographic ideas and styles and respect that everyone is unique. 

Professionalism, responsibility, respect policies and rules and regulations. I have just started a new dance teacher job and there is a set of rules which I will have to abide too, some of these are not what I have had to have done before but it Is my ethical duty to understand that these rules have been placed there for the greater good and different societies and groups have different views and different ways of doing things.

Team work and supporting peers is also a very important ethical value.

Ethics also comes into discussion when professional dancers are asked to work for free. This is not ethical, the employee should respect that the performer is a professional and should respect there abilities and talents as they would any other professional. You wouldn't expect a school teacher or doctor to work for free. 

ISTD CODE OF CONDUCT is something after researching that i forgot to put in my initial blog about ethics. Again this is a set of rules that dance teachers enrolled with the ISTD must abide to. 

'Ethics, as a formal field of philosophical enquiry is the philosophical study of morality

and moral issues are imbued with questions of value. Morals and ethics are

entwined and moral issues raise normative questions as opposed to factual ones.'

Ethics relating to my Inquiry 

My Inquiry is a very personal topic as i am discussing the psychological problems caused from the pressures of the industry and how we can cope so ethics will be very important. 

Data protection and confidentiality will be extremely important as well as making sure that i don't make my participates feel pressured to answer things they do not feel comfortable answering. 

I will have to make sure that i respect that every one is different and has different values and different ways of thinking and coping. 

Making sure i gain correct permission from all the participates will also be very important. 

Task 5A. Ethics

Without researching into Ethics these are the aspects of Ethics that i think relate to my Professional Practice.

Data Protection 

Teaching: Safe guarding students information. Any personal or professional recordings must remain confidential when legally required. 

Performing: For example handing out CVs and Headshots at auditions and any notes that have been made about you at auditions, the audition panel have to ensure they don't pass this information on beyond the company. 

From experience i know that Disney Land Paris are only allowed to hold your details for 6months due to the French Law. 

In the UK/USA however i they have our details on their file until they wish to contact/re audition you. 

Discrimination

Teaching: You have to have an equal opportunity when teaching you can not discriminate someone because of their ethnicity or ability or background. Have to treat everyone as equals. 

Performing: The stage: when advertising a job not allowed to write we want 'blonde' people for example. They seems to be allowed to write what the min height is they require, however sometimes the audition breakdown is too vague this is so they avoid being seen as discriminating.  

Reports 

Teaching: Reporting any accidents that may occur. Reporting confidential matters if suspect problems outside of the dance class. Informing the director/ person in charge of the dance school if a problem needs to be discussed. 

Performing: Reporting on mis conduct/ incidents that occur in the work place. 

Health and Safety 

Teaching: Insuring that a safe environment is created for the children. Fire procedures known by the children and staff. Incident book if required. Ice and heat packs available if needed. First Aider on sight. 

Performing: Insuring a safe environment is created for the performers, (on stage and off) Fire procedures known. Ice and heat packs available if needed. First Aider on sight. 

Research Continued

I have been researching different types of support there is for dancers who are struggling mentally with the pressures of the Industry, the thing that keeps popping up is how dancing is a great form of therapy. I find it ironic that this keeps popping up when I am searching for different therapies for dancers, who have a great deal of stress and self doubt from the dancing industry. This made me question is it the pressure of dancing that causes the problems or is it mainly the pressures the Industry or both? I have found this piece of literature below, it tries to answer the question, ‘does dancing change a person’s self-esteem?’ 


Understanding Dancers  Performance psychology
Richard Butler’s Sports Psychology in Action (1996) or Taylor and Taylor’s Psychology of Dance (1995)

Does dancing change a person’s self-esteem? I think dancing had a positive effect on my self-esteem. It made me feel confident, I was reasonably good at it when I was younger and I defined myself as a “dancer”, I was proud of that. When I talk about dance and self-esteem people always say the same, that dancing increased their sense of self-worth. But the scientific literature tells us a different story. Some of the scientific studies have found no evidence that dancing increases a person’s self-esteem and other studies have concluded that dancing can actually have a negative impact a person’s self esteem. The jury is, therefore, still out. We are undertaking a very large study into the relationship between dance and self-esteem in people of all ages and across all dance styles. 


I have found this very interesting and is definitely something to think about when carrying out my inquiry. Considering scientific evidence and looking more into the psychology views of pressures of the industry. A lot of dancers feel that when they are dancing it is their 'safe place' and boost there self-esteem after they have done a good performance, but it seems we have to injure a lot of self doubt and pressure to get to this point. 


 On March 9th 2014 I came across this really interesting article online,  'Teenage dancers endure pressure from all angles'  the link is below:

http://www.shsoutherner.net/a-e/2011/12/01/teenage-dancers-endure-pressure-from-all-angles/  

This article made me realise that for my inquiry to be successful when talking about in what ways do  professional performers/dancers cope with the pressures, as well as highlighting and discovering what the pressures are i need to look at where the pressures have come from. This article highlights that the main pressures can come from: 

• Instructors 

• Parents

• Friends/Peers 

• Self Pressure 

Self pressure seems to be the most dangerous, however you could argue that self pressure is created because of all the pressure that has been put on you by others.
This article again is very interesting as it points out the issues and the pressures, but it does not say how the dancers cope or what support or help there is out there for dancers with psychology issues triggered from the pressures of the professional dancing world. This makes me even more passionate about my inquiry in researching ways to help dancers become away of the support there is for them.


"Ballet is, as Hartnett puts it, “trying to succeed,” and part of succeeding is earning respect and reward from their instructors for losing weight. “Teachers will reward them for a while, but then when they see that they’re really sick, they have to stop,” explains Hartnett." 


This section of the article stood out to me as i do feel that Instructors do need to be careful when the teach as students all interpret things differently and continuous 'one off 'comments could trigger self doubt and lead to problems such as eating disorders. From my own personal experience i know that some teachers of dance do reward people for loosing a bit of weight or only pick the 'smallest' girls to be in the show numbers. This does make me question, 'is this necessary/fair' and what support is then given to the girls who are not picked? Are they told why this is the case or are they left wondering, 'it's because i'm not small enough' 'maybe i need to loose some weight' this then can become dangerous if the necessary support is not given. As dancers could begin to over think and this just becomes an added pressure.

Below is a section from a very interesting article, ' Behind the Curtain: The Body, Control and Ballet' http://www.siue.edu/sociology/EJS/v32kelso.htm

One director told one of his dancers to “drop the weight in three weeks. I don’t care how you do it”(Benn & Walters, 2001, p.145).  When she did in fact drop the weight by basically not eating, she was rewarded with a role in the performance that the company was rehearsing.  Dancers learn at an early age that rewards and punishments are based upon weight.  If a dancer loses weight, she is praised and rewarded with a role in a ballet.  If she does not, she is punished by not being cast at all (Gordon, 1983). 

Although this article is just from a Ballet point of view and i want to have a more generally performers overview for my Inquiry, I think this sums up this blog post that its is not only the pressure that you put on yourself that is dangerous, the pressures of others is equally as bad.

There needs to be more coping solutions for when this pressure gets too much.

Research

Researching pressures of the Industry i have come across this article, i found this very interesting and it is circulating around Facebook. This article is interesting because i recently posted another article on my blog about the pressures of being a dancer and it was very pessimistic, this article however shows a contrasting view.

http://industrydancemagazine.com/2014/03/why-i-will-never-be-quite-good-enough/

I feel that the Pressures of the Industry are becoming more acknowledged throughout the dance industry, especially within the network of professional dancer who is looking for work.

I would be interested to find out more about dancers who are still at college and whether they feel the pressure or have been advised on how to cope once they leave college and become independent.

This article is just one persons view and i feel that many people in the same situation will relate to this and find it inspiring however i feel some people will read it and disagree, for example they may be married with children and still being a professional dancer and this would go against many of the things that she is stating in this article.

This article has made me think 'how has she coped' 'what were her coping techniques' 'i wonder if she has suffered depression' and have the pressures of the industry made her a stronger person?

Response to more Questions that i asked to fellow Dancers!

How do you think dancers cope with the pressures of the industry?

I think some dancers manage to deal with the pressure, especially if they are very experienced & used to how the industry works, however I believe there are many dancers out there that struggle with the pressure also, as it can be very negative, narrow minded and extremely competitive, with not many jobs available, therefore the pressures of money & image etc is a continuous thing for dancers to deal with.

Do you think there is enough help psychology for dancers?

I definitely don't think there is enough physiologically help for dancers. A lot of this kind of help out there is for general people. I feel there need to be people that have trained as a dancer themselves or have studied a dancers lifestyle & pressures to properly understand to give correct physiological help.

What do you feel the biggest pressure is in the Industry at the moment as a Dancer?

I think the bigggest pressure in the industry is the way you look which affects a lot of people as sometimes it doesnt actually matter how good of a dancer you are whether you have a strength in technique or performance etc but it more often than not goes on what you look like as to how likely you are to get through a round and get hired at the end of the day. in an open call this is worse than a closed call as in a closed or private you more than likely will only be called in if you are a particular height etc and they will have looked at cv's before hand as wel as your headshot so it is still based on your look height etc wether you get a call but you wont have wasted you time and precious money going to an open call just to be turned away because they were actually looking for somone 5ft5 and didnt specify that on the website etc etc. this goes for the tiniest things not just height but such as hair colour, weight etc which is very disheartening when you know you can do exactly what they are asking you to dance wise but because you are too small or have blonde hair when they want brown you will get cut.

How do you cope with this pressure?

sometimes its just literally a case of getting used to it. once you realise that its not your talent thats letting you down (sometimes it is everyone has off days) but thats it literaly that you are too tall or short which you definetly cant change, one you get that in your head it gets easier coping with the pressure of getting cut all the time and being disheartened is natural but doesnt do you any favors in the long run. however being too fat for a certain employer is difficult to cope with as everyones body image is different and most dancers are actually pretty small (in weight) compared to the average person you see on the street so that is hard to cope with and the pressure of that means that most dancers watch there weight all the time...feeling bad when you eat something unhealthy going to the gym as much as you can or any type of exercise to try and stick to that typical dancers body. i personally take class as much as i can and try to watch what i eat but stay happy i dont make myself starve or get to bogged down with it as you have to live your life still at the end of the day.


How do you think depression affects dancer?

I guess with depression sometimes you can feel like you are not good enough or you never will be so you become a bit hopeless and feel like you can't try as hard as you want to. Also depression is quite emotionally draining, so it can stop you having the physical and even mental energy to fully apply yourself. It can be like trying to dance with a bit of a cold or flour or whatever. On the other hand, on a good day, dancing can release endorphins and make you feel better, but you have to have the drive and positivity to give it your all in the first place.

THE ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS I HAVE FOUND REALLY INTERESTING (AS WELL AS THE ONES IN MY PREVIOUS BLOG) AND HAVE CONFIRMED MY CHOICE THAT I WANT TO BE LOOKING INTO THE PRESSURES IN THE INDUSTRY AND WHAT IS ACTUALLY OUT THERE TO HELP DANCERS?

I WILL BE CREATING A SIG. I THINK I WILL CREATE A FACEBOOK GROUP AS IT IS EASIER TO SHARE IDEAS THAT WAY. IF YOU WANT TO BE PART ON MY SIG ON 'PRESSURES ON THE INDUSTRY' AND 'PYSCHOLOGY ASPECTS' LET ME KNOW YOUR FACEBOOK NAMES AND WE CAN GET DISCUSSING!

HEATHER X

Response to questions

Below is my first response to a couple of questions that i have asked to help with my inquiry.

These questions have been answered by a 22 year old performer who is currently in between contracts looking for work.

What do you consider to be the biggest pressure as a performer?


I think the biggest pressure in the industry is to have the 'right look'. You are considered 'big' if you are in some cases as small as a size 10, and audition panels will automatically overlook you, regardless of your talent, dependant on whether or not they deem your figure to be 'acceptable' and by this, they usually mean the smaller the better. In such an overcrowded industry, they have the luxury of being able to be this ruthless and selective but it can be extremely disheartening to dancers who are not naturally tiny and in some cases is resulting in the most talented dancers not booking the jobs, simply because there are other girls available, who weighs less. It is also a huge contributing factor in the large number of girls suffering from an eating disorder within the industry as they often feel this is the only way they can keep their weight down and consequently find work as a dancer.


How do you feel depression affects dancers?

I don't feel that depression would be linked directly with the dance industry, but certainly that for somebody suffering with the illness, that the often constant rejection could contribute and perhaps make the symptoms more severe. It is without doubt one of the hardest industries- overcrowded, critical, painful, pressurised and in most cases you are faced with constant rejection. You push your bodies to the limit, work sometimes several jobs to be able to continue in such a low paid profession and hang around for hours to constantly be told no and for somebody suffering with depression when everything already feels like it's going wrong it can be difficult to take and you are perhaps more likely to be disheartened and unable to persevere and look towards the future and hope that one day you will get that elusive yes!

Questions

After a huge brainstorming session and research i have narrowed my questions down. 

I feel that i am in-between the stage of being a dancer and teaching as although i teach dance and i also still attend auditions.

 I feel i don't want my inquiry to be based completely on the teaching aspect of dance, as although this is something i am extremely interested in I feel at this stage of my career looking into psychology behind dancers will be more beneficial. This is something i am very interested in as i have also been aware of why people are doing things and how dancers think compared to non-dancers. 

This will also help me as a dance teacher, understanding dancers and the way we think and the profession will help me to share my experiences and that of others with children and help them if they want to persue a career in dance or whether they are doing it just for fun. 

'Pressures of the Industry' is something i am very passionate about as i am feeling the pressures of the industry and inquiring about this will help my professional practise as i am hoping to finding coping strategies and reasoning that will be able to help others as well as myself. 

Here are some of the questions i have come up with. 

• What are the main pressures of the performing arts industry and how do they affect dancers and what are the different ways which we can cope with these?
• What are the physiological problems caused from the pressures of the industry?
• How does depression affect dancers?
• What are different methods and solutions for dancers to cope with the physiological problems caused from the pressures of the industry?
• What are considered the main pressures of the Industry for a dancer and what are the best solutions for coping?

If you are interested in the same topics or have experiences of the topics mentioned give me an email and we can start to form so SIG. My email is heathersophiesmith@hotmail.co.uk 

Heather X