Assertion and Perspective in Making Decisions

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movement pattern analysisA Movement Pattern Analysis profile reflects how an individual balances Assertion (the exertion of tangible movement effort to make something happen) with Perspective (positioning oneself to get a better view of the situation).  In the pilot study group, some individuals emphasized Assertion, while others favored Perspective.

The hypothesis was that those high on Assertion would need less information and come to a decision more quickly than those high in Perspective.  And this proved to be the case.  With regard to these two dimensions, the MPA profile showed predictive validity.

This pilot study focused on the utility of using movement-based observational measures to capture individual difference in decision-making.   Wide use of MPA profiles in business (where some companies have employed it in management teams for two – three decades) has established face validity of the profile.  That is, MPA profiles appear accurate and practically useful.

This more recent study has implications for applying movement-based observational methods in a broader context — to the investigation of experienced military and political leaders.  Find out more –   http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00658/full.

Observing Movement from Two Perspectives

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LabanThe June gathering in Montreal of American, Canadian, and French movement analysts provided many opportunities for moving, observing, and talking together.  This was a daunting enterprise, for not only were participants navigating between two systems of movement analysis but also two languages – English and French.

To facilitate this exchange, there was a full day of movement workshops based on the themes of flow, weight, and relationship to space.  On the Laban Movement Analysis (LMA) side, Kathie and Pat Debenham, Cate Deicher, Tricia Bauman, and Martha Eddy led sessions respectively exploring weight and flow, combinations of weight and flow, space effort, vision and fluid systems.  On the Functional Analysis of the Dancing Body (AFCMD) side, Emmanuellle Lyon, Teresa Salerno, and Soahanta De Oliveira led sessions respectively on the related themes of circulation of movement through the body, postural muscle tone and weight, and peripheral vision and the apprehension of space.

As one participant commented, the LMA sessions utilized improvisation to evoke expressive movement while the AFCMD sessions employed set exercises linked to dance sequences to facilitate more functional movement.  This only skims the surface of convergence and divergence between the two systems.  And indeed, the workshops and collegial discussion was videotaped and will serve as material for ongoing research by the team of Harbonnier-Topin, Dussault, and Ferri.