Greetings

My name is Anya Hershberger, and I am a student at the University of Notre Dame. I am doing a research paper on the relationship between ballroom dancing and male-female relationships. In my research, I came across an article in The New
York Times entitled "On Campus, Tripping the Light Fantastic" from 1999. In that article, Dr. Spanier, the President of Penn State, was quoted addressing that very issue.

Has anyone here, or anyone you know, noticed any change in the male-female relationships as a result of ballroom
dancing?

Have you noticed any other significant developments, both in yourself and in others, since attending ballroom classes?

Any information that you are able to provide me with/ direct me to would be very helpful.


Thank you so much for your time!


Anya Hershberger

Anya,

Interesting topic. As far as when there is an existing relationship taking up ballroom dance training together can reinforce the strengths (the give and take) that exists in a relationship. And, conversely, "expose" the fault-finding or lack of patience.

As far as male-female interactions in the ballroom social dancing environment, they are a microcosm of what goes on in general life. Such as: Attractive, fit women get the most attention and get asked more often to dance. Men vie for the attention of the women by attempting to show their prowess as a dancer.

When I became first and foremost a devotee of ballroom dance as an art and as a venue to compete in I seriously cut back on social dancing. I found myself really feeling different than the men who were in it just to "meet chicks".

Hello! That's a really interesting topic. Well, personally, I met my boyfriend through dance, and I'm sooo happy! He's awesome and I'm soooo happy that I met him, I wouldn't give him up for the world. Also alot of couples I know that dance together, some professional and some not, have also fallen in love while dancing. Just look at some of the couples who are, or have been, the best in America or in the world. Like Marcus and Karen Hilton, Igor and Polina Pilipenchuk, Nicholas Kosovich and Lena Bacheva,Bob Powers and Julia Gorchakova, and even the founders and owners of this site, Jonathan and Melissa Atkinson. I'm not saying that all couples fall in love. I know many partners that would never even consider dating! However, when your dancing that closely for hours at a time practicing, sparks start to fly! lol~ I hope I helped just post if you need anything else!

I did a little study last year about adult education. This included informal education which led me to look at a dance class. I found there was a high percentage of people wanting to be with like minded people. This in itself is ambiguous however there was also a high percentage of divorced people in a 40+ age group. So yes they are looking for people who are social and wanting to be with people. One interesting thing I discovered about the men was that there was a significant element who danced to finesse their skill. These men were also achievers in other activitites. Dance for them was about "mastery" and yes they certainly needed a female partner to do this with. This may trigger some thoughts on what drives these relationships. The others who were there simply to meet partners unfortunately did include some with self gratification only on their mind. These peopele were the minority however one bad apple could affect a number of people. Regards Susan