Abuse and harm in dance - a rapid scoping review protocol

Allegations of emotional, sexual and physical abuse in dance have been documented and reported in several, high-profile media stories and highlight that humiliation, harsh criticism, ridicule and non-accidental physical trauma have a chronic, lingering impact on dancers’ mental health (Daly, 2023; Moola & Krahn, 2018). Studies imply that emotional or physical abuse and aspects of neglect can be caused by a variety of people. A systems thinking approach can be helpful in gaining an overview of individuals in roles of responsibility crucial to addressing abuse prevention in dance (Dodd et al., 2024; Rasmussen, 1997). However, to date, a system thinking approach has not been applied in dance. Therefore, this rapid scoping review aims to not only give an overview of existing evidence on abuse and harm in dance but also present risk and protective factors embedded across different systems relevant to dance. By using the SPIDER acronym, researchers will search databases such as Psycinfo (Ovid), Medline (Ovid), Embase (Ovid) and the search engine Google Scholar. All studies will be loaded into Covidence and screened for eligibility. Rasmussen’s Risk Management Framework (RMF) will be used as an extraction tool. The quality of all studies will be assessed with questions adapted from the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). The reviewers will use a thematic analysis approach to analyse all included studies. Additionally, the AccriMap method will be used to support the reviewers in identifying and presenting enabling factors involved in abusive behaviours across the levels of the RMF.