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Body, Movement and Dance in

Psychotherapy: An International
Journal for Theory, Research
and Practice
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Forms of vitality, by Daniel N.

Stern
a
Eva Tillberg
a
Child and adolescent psychotherapist/dance
movement therapist , Stockholm , Sweden
Published online: 28 Aug 2012.

To cite this article: Eva Tillberg (2012) Forms of vitality, by Daniel N. Stern, Body,
Movement and Dance in Psychotherapy: An International Journal for Theory, Research
and Practice, 7:4, 305-308, DOI: 10.1080/17432979.2012.717968

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 Body, Movement and Dance in Psychotherapy
Vol. 7, No. 4, November 2012, 305308

BOOK REVIEW

Forms of vitality, by Daniel N. Stern, New York, Oxford University Press,

2010, 167 pp., 21.99 (hardback), ISBN 978-0-19-958606-6

The black and white cover photography shows a woman caught in a present
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moment of dynamic movement. Her dance/movement will for certain in the

next millisecond take another direction, turn, form, quality and maybe in
relation to another person. Will she turn to you, the reader? As a dance
movement therapist my thoughts and feelings tune in to this unpredictable and
vivacious moment, which is very alive and now. Thus the cover, the text and the
subtext throughout this latest book by Daniel Stern focuses on how human
experience is being captured and perceived, rather than explaining what is
happening, or why.
The term vitality is the focus of attention. Movement, rhythm and vitality
force are seen as basic phenomena always present in everyday life, in
psychotherapy and in the arts. According to Stern, vitality is a phenomenon
hard to grasp. Vitality should be seen as a force in its own right and not to be
described in terms of emotion or cognition. It is about communication between
minds on a non-verbal level; how to think, feel and share lived experiences.
Forms of Vitality covers 149 pages divided into three sections. Part I offers
the reader an introduction and background to the subject. In four chapters
Stern drafts a theoretical framework for forms of vitality, and makes an
attempt to get a sense of its varied nature. Vitality should be understood as a
whole, consisting of several separate elements. Understanding the world in a
fragmented, reduced way does not support a theoretical framework for
understanding forms of vitality. He problematises around this scientific
dilemma.
According to Stern, the familiar, everyday world seems to be made of
vitality force. He also states that the phenomenon is not easily described or
captured by conscious, mental operations. The human ability to grasp a normal
phenomenal experience emerges from the separate existence of movement,
force, time, space and intention. Stern writes about this experience: It is not
analysed in any conscious way piece by piece,/. . ./, even though each separate
element could be taken aside and studied in isolation (p. 5).
Stern makes an important connection between moving and thinking:
Dynamic forms of vitality include mental movement as well as physical action
(p. 21). He draws attention to the thought that movement in mind makes an

ISSN 17432979 print/ISSN 17432987 online

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17432979.2012.717968
http://www.tandfonline.com
 306 Book review

analogue to bodily movement. In Sterns language (a language rich in

adjectives) the mind can wander, explode, tumble about, fade out etc. I come to
think of the deep body-mind connections child analyst Anne Alvarez reflects
upon in working with children. She emphasises the important link between
movement and thinking, and connects this to time and space in the childs inner
world (Alvarez cited in Blomberg, 2001, p. 57). From my own experience,
DMT with children deals in a very direct way with vitality force. Picking up
movements in intersubjective play is one example of DMT technique, which
can be seen as a certain form of imitation combined with joint attention, on a
bodily/psychological level.
Stern also gives his focus of attention a phenomenological touch and
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proposes a theoretical base in behavioural sciences and psychology. In doing so

he includes different perspectives. This is a sympathetic approach, and also a
necessary task, when involving vitality and movement into the psychother-
apeutic context. He bridges these ideas in Chapter 3. An interesting and
personal short summary, beginning with Freuds notion of psychic energy,
takes the reader on a mental walk, ending up with discussions about
neuroscientific processes. The arousal system and the brainstem have key
roles for vitality forms, according to Stern. In his own terminology, there is
a neuroscientific domain to examine. It seems to be an attempt to make a
connection to his developmental psychology theoretical framework, and add
a meaning-making dimension to neuroscientific explanations. I am not sure if it
is possible to combine these elements, and Stern might have to explicate this,
but it implies that there is something beyond just explaining what is happening
or why.
Part II consists of only one chapter; however a most central one as it
embraces the theme of vitality within the arts. Here Stern discusses the vitality
forms in music, dance, theatre and drama and how arousal-related vitality
forms work on us as human beings. These areas are familiar to DMT
practitioners, something Stern also states. Practitioners in dance and music
therapy, he says, are highly sensitive to . . . the myriad of vitality forms they
encounter in their work (p. 89). Stern is nevertheless surprisingly brief in
presenting references from the related field of dance movement therapy. Laban
is mentioned, but primarily in connection to modern dance. Here, I would like
to mention Katya Bloom, who combines the infant observers and the dance
movement therapists perspectives (2006, 2009). Her work connects Laban
Movement Analysis (LMA) to clinical work in an integrative way. The motion
terms in LMA describe physical occurrences which could be connected to pre-
conscious material in DMT. Still, the list of references connected with early
intersubjectivity is rich and profound, and will inspire the interested reader.
This is truly a related field to dance movement therapy that could encourage
further research.
Part III is the conclusion of the book, but indeed does not close the research
of the subject. Stern raises new questions to develop the concept of vitality
forms. This third part also reflects upon clinical implications. Vitality forms, as
expressed within the arts, shed light upon the particular kind of intersubjectiv-
ity as it occurs in a psychotherapeutic relationship. This is most important
 Book review 307

throughout the therapy process. Implicit phenomena are vital ingredients in

building therapeutic alliance, as well as in turning points that promote psychic
change. Countertransference, containing function, imitation and now
moments, are categories that consist of a high level of bodiliness (Tillberg,
2010). Sterns book therefore treats central aspects in psychotherapeutic work
that is most interesting and also relevant to the field of DMT.
Stern is one of the members of The Boston Change Process Study Group
(BCPSG) created in 1995. Their focus of interest is on processes of change as
they occur in normal development and in psychotherapy. This is an interesting
research field closely related to dance movement therapy, as well as other
creative therapies. Processes of change as observed on a microlevel, as in
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infancy studies, might shed light on how change occurs in psychotherapeutic

treatment. The past continually interacts with and shapes the present moment
in a direct way (Stern, 2004).
Modern psychoanalytic research focuses on early intersubjectivity where
bodily, emotional and meaning-making processes are active at the same time.
Terms such as musicality, flow, moods and emotional waves are used to
describe the quality of what takes place on an intersubjective level (Beebe,
Sorter, Rustin, & Knoblauch, 2003; Trevarthen, 2005; Tronick, 1989, 2002).
This truly connects to creative aspects in psychotherapy. It also shows, I think,
the importance of a bodily level being included in therapeutic work.
Stern refers to the creative therapies, and DMT is mentioned, but he covers
this briefly. I would have wished for more connections with DMT. Kalila
Homann (2010) relates DMT to neurobiology, and points out the advantage of
direct access to implicit processing. As mentioned earlier, Katya Bloom (2006,
2009) shows vital connections between early intersubjectivity and the clinical
work of DMT.
The therapeutic quality of the arts is nevertheless a constant subtext in the
book or, more likely, its main theme. I think Stern is an explorative writer who
does not hesitate to cross boarders while raising new questions. I find the book
sometimes vague and difficult to follow, reading is at the same time an
adventure. It seems to me that Stern made an attempt to improvise when
writing. My experience as a reader is similar to the improvisational quality of
dance, and to the therapeutic context as well. Themes can stay and flow in
invariable forms and directions. My impression is also to be a reader Stern
talks to, rather than give a lecture for. He addresses the reader with an
intersubjective voice.
Daniel N. Sterns theoretical and clinical approach has greatly influenced
the fields of art, dance and music therapy for decades. One reason for this is
certainly his way of describing life in a way that is more integrative and alive.
Another important reason might be the crucial fact that implicit knowing and
creative expressions are apparent within our professional fields.
Therapeutic dance/movement takes place in the present moment. Art,
emotional experience, bodily expression and therapeutic relation (i.e.
intersubjectivity) coexist at the same time. Dance movement therapists
regularly deal with the dilemma of trying to describe these phenomena in a
comprehensible way. How can we communicate knowledge about our
 308 Book review

professional insights to related fields? How can related fields inspire our own
professional field to develop? Forms of Vitality contribute to these questions in
a meaningful sense. Vitality force refers to a holistic quality and clearly
connects to a variety of movement aspects. Dance movement therapy research
could therefore well dive into these thoughts, and explore them further.

References

Beebe, B., Sorter, D., Rustin, J., & Knoblauch, S. (2003). A comparison of Meltzoff,
Trevarthen, and Stern. Psychoanalytic Dialogues, 13, 777804.
Downloaded by [Ume University Library] at 12:50 13 October 2014

Blomberg, B. (2001). Form in unconscious phantasy, thinking and walking. Abstract

from a seminar with Anne Alvarez. Mellanrummet. Tidskrift om barn- och
ungdomspsykoterapi nr, 4, 5361.
Bloom, K. (2006). The embodied self. Movement and psychoanalysis. London: Karnac
Books.
Bloom, K. (2009). Embodied attentiveness: Recognising the language of movement.
Infant Observation. The International Journal of Infant Observation and its
Applications, 12, 175185.
Homann, K.B. (2010). Embodied concepts of neurobiology in dance/movement therapy
practice. American Journal of Dance Therapy, 32, 8099.
Stern, D. (2004). The present moment in psychotherapy and everyday life. New York,
NY: W.W. Norton.
Tillberg, E. (2010). Kroppslighet och meningsskapande i psykoterapi [Embodiment and
meaningmaking in psychotherapy]. Degree project from the Advanced Level
Programme in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy at The Erica Foundation,
Stockholm, Sweden.
Trevarthen, C. (2005). First things first: Infants make good use of the sympathetic
rhythm of imitation, without reason or language. Journal of Child Psychotherapy,
31, 91113.
Tronick, E.Z. (1989). Emotions and emotional communication in infants. American
Psychologist, 44, 112119.
Tronick, E.Z. (2002). A model of infant mood states and sandarian affective waves.
Psychoanalytic Dialogues, 12, 7399.

Eva Tillberg
Child and adolescent psychotherapist/dance movement therapist
Stockholm, Sweden
Email: eva.tillberg@bahnhof.se
2012, Eva Tillberg