Three research projects that apply Contact Improvisation (CI) in settings that range from socio-political and pedagogical to cognitive science meet up in this session. They show how systematic-reflexive approaches advance the understanding of CI principles and the contributions it can make to interaction theory (regarding topics like autonomy, collaboration, and participatory sense making) and its wider socio-political import.
Facilitated by Kevin O’Connor.

Defne Erdur’s PhD focused on psycho-social and socio-political implications of implementation of CI in Turkey where body, touch and sexuality are still taboo; gender inequality, power relations in daily life are problematic and personal boundaries are frequently violated. She re ects on the chang- es amateur dancers went through in relation to concepts that framed her research.

Cognitive scientist Michael Kimmel investigates expert CI duets in very thin slices of interaction - often shorter than a second – describing in detail which perception skills, microactions, and body habits contribute to success, and how they are interwoven. This analysis also shows how complex coupled movements need not emerge from somebody’s inner design, showcasing a new, interactive approach to creativity.

Choreographer Eryn Rosenthal, whose work investigates the connections between CI and democratic activism in South Africa, Spain and the US, will share some of her current research applying CI to diversity and inclusion initiatives at the University of Michigan. How can the body be a laboratory for examining dialogue-building, choice-making, roles and habits?