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Completed

NCT Number: NCT07024901

The Effects of the Somatic Intervention 'Dance-Walk' on Body Awareness, Vitality, and Mental Health in Help-Seeking Adults: a RCT Study

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a movement program called "Dance-Walk" can improve body awareness, energy levels, and mental health in adults seeking mental health support. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does Dance-Walk help people feel more connected to their bodies? Does Dance-Walk increase people's energy and vitality? Does Dance-Walk improve mental health by reducing depression, anxiety, and stress?

Researchers will compare people who do Dance-Walk right away to people who wait to do the program later to see if Dance-Walk works to improve mental health.

All participants will fill out online surveys about their mood, energy levels, and body awareness at the start of the study. Then, every participant will be randomly placed into one of two groups - one group will start Dance-Walk right away, the other will wait. Participants who will be assigned to the first group will attend 4 weekly Dance-Walk sessions that combine movement, dance, and walking. All participants will fill out the same surveys again after the 4-week program. Participants who will be assigned to the second group will get to do the Dance-Walk program after the first group finishes.

Each Dance-Walk session will focus on helping people tune into their body feelings and use movement to manage emotions and stress. The program is designed to help people feel more energetic and improve their overall mental well-being.

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Key information

Conditions

Healthy Anxiety Anxiety Disorders Behavior Behavioral Symptoms Body Awareness Depression Depression Disorders Emotional Regulation Mental Disorders Mental Health Personal Satisfaction Psychological Distress Psychological Well-Being Self-Control Social Behavior Stress Vitality Well-Being

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Vilnius university

Vilnius, Lithuania

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Age 18 years or older
  • Seeking to improve emotional well-being or mental health
  • Able to participate in light physical activity (walking and gentle movement)
  • Able to read and understand Lithuanian language
  • Willing to attend 4 weekly group sessions
  • Able to complete online questionnaires
  • Willing to be randomly assigned to either immediate intervention or waitlist group
  • Able to provide informed consent

Exclusion criteria

  • Under 18 years of age
  • Current severe mental health crisis requiring immediate professional intervention
  • Physical limitations that prevent participation in walking or gentle movement activities
  • Unable to commit to attending 4 weekly sessions
  • Currently participating in another research study involving mental health interventions
  • Unable to access internet for completing online questionnaires

Treatment and study plan

Dance-walk

Behavioral

Dance-Walk is a 4-week somatic intervention combining movement, dance, and walking elements designed to enhance body awareness and emotional regulation. The program consists of 4 weekly group sessions, each lasting approximately 90-120 minutes. Sessions focus on helping participants connect with their body sensations through guided movement exercises that integrate dance movements with mindful walking practices. The intervention targets autonomic nervous system regulation and aims to improve interoceptive awareness, emotional expression, and stress management through embodied practices. Sessions are facilitated by trained practitioners and emphasize non-verbal emotional expression and somatic experiencing to promote mental health and vitality.

Primary outcomes

  1. Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness Scale-2 (MAIA-2) (Mehling et al., 2018)

    Time frame: Baseline to immediately post-intervention (approximately 4 weeks)

    Assesses multiple dimensions of interoceptive awareness, including noticing (score range: 0-20), not-distracting (score range: 0-30), not-worrying (score range: 0-25), attention regulation (score range: 0-35), emotional awareness (score range: 0-25), self-regulation (score range: 0-20), body listening (score range: 0-15), and trusting (score range: 0-15). Higher scores indicate greater interoceptive awareness (better outcome).

  2. Subjective Vitality Scale (SVS) (Ryan & Frederick, 1997)

    Time frame: Baseline to immediately post-intervention (approximately 4 weeks)

    Measures feelings of energy and aliveness (score range: 0-47). Higher scores indicate greater subjective vitality and energy levels (better outcome).

Secondary outcomes

  1. Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21) (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995)

    Time frame: Baseline to immediately post-intervention (approximately 4 weeks)

    Assesses symptoms of depression (score range: 0-21), anxiety (score range: 0-21), and stress (score range: 0-21). Higher scores indicate more mental health problems (worse outcome).

  2. Positive Mental Health Scale (PMH-Scale) (Lukat et al., 2016)

    Time frame: Baseline to immediately post-intervention (approximately 4 weeks)

    Measures positive aspects of mental health, including emotional well-being, psychological well-being, and social well-being (score range: 0-27). Higher scores indicate better positive mental health (better outcome).

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Vilnius University

Other

Registry information

Official study title

The Effectiveness of The Somatic Intervention 'Dance-Walk' on Body Awareness, Vitality, and Mental Health

Acronym: DANCEWALK

Important dates

Study start
2025
Primary completion
2025
Study completion
2025
First posted
Jun 17, 2025
Registry last updated
Dec 10, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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