Rocking, huddle, crouch, floating limb, bouncing, twirling, spinning, head weaving or picking at nothing and even dancing are names that researchers have given to stereotypical movements developed by macaques in laboratories. These stereotyped behaviours are defined as acts without any obvious goal or function which are being repeated over and over again. They appear when animals are deprived of their social contacts or when they are closed in inappropriate spaces, such as circuses, laboratories or ZOOs. Stereotyped behaviour can occur in a large variety of species from cannaries to polar bears to humans. Some animals may spend up to 70% of their time pacing or executing other stereotype. 

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Why do they develop these behaviours and what are their effects?
Research showed that it may be the rhythmicity what organism finds rewarding. In humans, children who showed head-banging behaviour were described as prone to other forms of rhythmic activity and as very responsive to music. Other studies have indicated that stereotypic behaviour in animals produces a 'trance-like' state and is linked to reduced awareness of the environment. 
When looking at these animals you could think about GIFs, repetitive moving images that are massively exposed on social networks and fascinate us. The rhythmic movements including transfer of weight when walking or bouncing the head in elephants may remind us of a rock concert or a night club. Yet, it is quite agreed that the stereotyped behaviour is a sign of distress and in many cases it may be self-damaging.

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So, what about dancing?

It is clear that it englobes a large specter of activities and appears in many contexts and may be driven by all the kinds of needs, such as the desire to move, to share time and space with others, to be together, to bring the sensible to the rough life, or to be watched… And there are many similarities with ARBs, in appaerance and in motivation : dancing has no apparent practical sense, it is often rhythmic, it can be repetitive and is often executed in order to escape the environment, the reality, to be carried away, somewhere else. Is it a kind of ARB of a small intensity, allowing the individuals to cope with their environnement? Would we be dancing if we had ideal life conditions? We don’t have a scientific response, we don’t even have one definition of dance. 

But we believe that dance can become an ARB. With our new creation we will do our best to approach the astonishing, hypnotising and weird behaviours of non-human creatures in distress. In the upcoming blogs, we will share with you our inspirations, questions, images and strategies used in the creative process of our new dance piece inspired by Abnormal Repetitive Behaviours.

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And if you wish to go further concerning the animals and ARBs please, scroll below the video.