Description of the methodology applied in a qualitative research in Body Expression and Dance: the life and work of Patricia Stokoe

Abstract

The beginnings of corporal expression have been and are being analyzed from different perspectives. This work has attempted to delve into the beginnings that occurred throughout the 20th century, when this emerging discipline was nourished by multiple sources: society, arts, education, psychology, etc. Patricia Stokoe (1919-1996), devoted her life to the study of body language-dance. Considered one of the initiators in this field (Kalmar, 2005; Cardona, 2009; Ruano & Sánchez, 2009), her work continues to be a reference nowadays and it is present in a large part of the scientific production generated in this discipline. It is in the research by Cardona (2009), who carried out a doctoral thesis, where the study of the life and work of the author has been deepened. We present here how this qualitative research was carried out. A cross-sectional descriptive treatment was carried out, using the analysis of documents and interviews. We conducted more than thirty interviews between Buenos Aires and Spain, establishing 4 dimensions / fields that provided structure and clarity to the study: life analysis; analysis of the influences on life and work; analysis of the work; bibliographic essay of the work. We obtained results that make the life and work of Patricia Stokoe one of the pioneers in the construction and genesis of corporal expression.