Exploring the Lived Experience of Authentic Movement in Nature as a Catalyst for Transformation

Abstract

This qualitative research study explored the lived experience of using authentic movement within the context of nature, specifically to discover if this practice offered transformative potential for those using it. I used the heuristic research method to interview 13 coresearchers and interpret the results. Twelve of the coresearchers were female and 1 was male. They were all above the age of 50 and experienced in the use of authentic movement, both professionally and as a personal meditative practice. My focus was on their personal lived experiences. I used open-ended interview questions that resembled the technique of explication, borrowed from the science of consciousness and philosophy. The interviews were then analyzed. The heuristic process aided my ability to understand the potential for transformation that I observed during the interviews. The data analysis was multilayered. The first level of analysis identified 4 categories: (a) the explication of 1 lived experience of authentic movement in a natural environment and its transformative potential, (b) the influences that a natural environment had on authentic movement, (c) various challenges or differences between moving indoors versus moving outdoors, and (d) the cultivation of a deeper sense of self and the emotions contributing to the experience. The second level of analysis revealed 7 core themes: Gratitude, joy/surprise, grief and death, the Divine/God/sacred-mystical-mystery/larger self, connections to Nature/Nature elements, the transpersonal, and integration/acceptance. A final cohesive synthesis unveiled 4 significant components (transformation, emotion, nature, and integration) shared by each coresearcher. These suggested that the lived experiences offered both a process and outcome that implied that the practice of authentic movement offered a transformative potential when practiced in nature.