Journal of Dance and Embodied Structure provides the following manuscript template to help authors prepare submissions in a clear, consistent, and academically appropriate format.

Authors should use this template as a general guide when preparing manuscripts. The structure may be adapted where necessary, particularly for practice-based research, performance analysis, choreographic analysis, interviews, and other article types. However, all submissions must include the required metadata, statements, references, and ethical disclosures where applicable.

1. Manuscript Title

The manuscript title should be concise, informative, and specific. It should clearly reflect the main topic, object of study, theoretical focus, or methodological approach of the submission.

Example format:

Title of the Manuscript: Subtitle Where Applicable

2. Author Information

For the initial submission, authors should follow the journal’s double-blind review requirements. Where blind review is required, author names, affiliations, acknowledgments, and other identifying information should be removed from the main manuscript file and entered separately in the online submission system.

For the title page or final accepted version, author information should include:

• Full name of each author;
• Institutional affiliation;
• Department or research unit, where applicable;
• Country or region;
• Email address of the corresponding author;
• ORCID iD, where available.

Example format:

Author Name
Department, Institution, Country/Region
Email: [email protected]
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000

3. Abstract

Each manuscript should include an abstract of approximately 150–250 words. The abstract should clearly summarize the research purpose, theoretical or methodological approach, main findings or arguments, and contribution to the field.

The abstract should not include citations unless absolutely necessary.

Suggested abstract structure:

• Research background or problem;
• Purpose or research question;
• Method, material, or analytical approach;
• Main findings, arguments, or insights;
• Contribution to dance, embodiment, movement, choreography, performance, or related fields.

4. Keywords

Authors should provide 4–6 keywords. Keywords should be specific and relevant to the manuscript’s topic, method, theoretical framework, and subject area.

Example:

Keywords: dance studies; embodied knowledge; choreography; movement analysis; performance studies; body-space relations

5. Main Text Structure

Research articles should normally follow a clear academic structure. Authors may adapt the headings according to the article type and research design.

Recommended structure for Original Research Articles:

• Introduction
• Literature Review or Theoretical Framework
• Methodology or Analytical Approach
• Analysis or Findings
• Discussion
• Conclusion

6. Introduction

The introduction should present the research topic, background, problem, research question, and significance of the manuscript. It should explain why the topic is relevant to dance studies, embodied research, choreography, movement structure, performance studies, or related fields.

The introduction may include:

• The research context;
• The central problem or question;
• The object of study, such as a performance, choreographic work, movement practice, archive, community, theory, or method;
• The article’s main argument or purpose;
• The contribution of the study;
• A brief outline of the manuscript structure.

7. Literature Review or Theoretical Framework

This section should situate the manuscript within relevant scholarship. Authors should engage with appropriate academic literature and identify how their work contributes to existing debates.

Depending on the manuscript, this section may discuss:

• Dance studies and performance studies literature;
• Theories of embodiment, movement, space, rhythm, gesture, or perception;
• Choreographic theory or artistic research debates;
• Somatic, anthropological, cultural, historical, pedagogical, or philosophical frameworks;
• Digital dance, motion capture, media, archives, or technological approaches;
• Research gaps and conceptual problems addressed by the manuscript.

8. Methodology or Analytical Approach

The methodology section should clearly explain how the research was conducted or how the analysis was developed. The method should be appropriate to the article type and research question.

Possible methods include, but are not limited to:

• Performance analysis;
• Choreographic analysis;
• Movement analysis;
• Practice-based or practice-led research;
• Somatic inquiry;
• Ethnography or fieldwork;
• Interviews;
• Archival research;
• Historical analysis;
• Discourse analysis;
• Digital methods, motion capture, or media analysis;
• Comparative or theoretical analysis.

Authors should describe research materials, participants, performances, archives, artistic processes, analytical procedures, or documentation methods where applicable.

9. Practice-Based Research Structure

For practice-based or practice-led submissions, the manuscript may follow a more flexible structure. However, the article should clearly present the relationship between artistic practice and scholarly inquiry.

Recommended structure for Practice-Based Research Articles:

• Research context and artistic background;
• Research question or practice-led inquiry;
• Description of the choreographic, movement, or performance process;
• Documentation and analytical method;
• Critical reflection on embodied practice;
• Theoretical, artistic, cultural, or methodological contribution;
• Conclusion.

Practice-based submissions should not be limited to descriptive accounts of creative work. They should present critical reflection, methodological clarity, and scholarly contribution.

10. Analysis, Findings, or Discussion

This section should present the main analysis, interpretation, findings, or argument of the manuscript. Authors should organize the discussion clearly and support claims with evidence, examples, documentation, literature, or critical reasoning.

Depending on the manuscript, this section may analyze:

• Movement structures, gestures, rhythm, spatial organization, or bodily techniques;
• Choreographic composition, performance dramaturgy, or embodied aesthetics;
• Historical, cultural, social, political, or intercultural dimensions of dance;
• Practice-based processes, rehearsal methods, or artistic decision-making;
• Audience reception, pedagogy, documentation, archives, or digital mediation;
• Theoretical implications for embodiment, structure, performance, or movement research.

11. Conclusion

The conclusion should summarize the main argument, findings, or insights of the manuscript. It should also clarify the contribution of the study and, where appropriate, suggest limitations or future research directions.

The conclusion should not merely repeat the introduction. It should show how the manuscript has advanced understanding of dance, embodied knowledge, movement structure, choreography, performance, or related fields.

12. Notes

Authors may use footnotes or endnotes where necessary. Notes should be used for supplementary explanation rather than for excessive citation or unrelated commentary.

Notes should be numbered consecutively and formatted consistently according to the journal’s citation style.

13. Figures, Tables, Images, and Captions

Figures, tables, images, diagrams, notation examples, screenshots, movement maps, and other visual materials should be numbered consecutively and cited in the main text.

Example format:

Figure 1. Movement pathway in the opening section of the performance.

Table 1. Categories used in the movement analysis.

Captions should include sufficient information for readers to understand the material. Where visual materials are reproduced from other sources, full credit and permission information must be provided.

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce copyrighted images, photographs, archival materials, diagrams, artworks, screenshots, or performance documentation.

14. Multimedia and Supplementary Materials

Where appropriate, authors may refer to video, audio, digital archives, motion capture data, performance documentation, or other supplementary materials.

Authors should provide stable links or access information where possible. Supplementary materials must comply with copyright, consent, privacy, and ethical requirements.

15. Acknowledgments

Authors may include acknowledgments to recognize individuals, institutions, communities, artists, performers, archives, funders, or organizations that contributed to the research but do not meet the criteria for authorship.

For double-blind review, acknowledgments should be removed from the main manuscript file and added only after acceptance, unless otherwise instructed by the editorial office.

16. Author Contribution Statement

For multi-author submissions, authors are encouraged to include an author contribution statement.

Example:

Author Contributions: Author A contributed to conceptualization, methodology, analysis, and writing. Author B contributed to fieldwork, performance documentation, review, and editing. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.

For single-author submissions, authors may state:

Author Contribution: The author solely conducted the conceptualization, research, analysis, and writing of this manuscript.

17. Funding Statement

Authors must disclose all sources of funding that supported the research, artistic practice, documentation, fieldwork, writing, or publication of the manuscript.

Example where funding was received:

Funding: This research was supported by [Name of Funding Agency] under Grant No. [Grant Number].

Example where no funding was received:

Funding: The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, or publication of this article.

18. Conflict of Interest Statement

Authors must disclose any financial, personal, professional, institutional, artistic, or other relationships that could be perceived as influencing the research, interpretation, review, or publication of the manuscript.

Example where no conflict exists:

Conflict of Interest: The author(s) declare no conflict of interest.

19. Ethics Statement

Research involving human participants, interviews, fieldwork, community practices, classroom observation, performance documentation, bodily participation, personal data, identifiable images, or culturally sensitive materials should include an ethics statement where applicable.

Example where approval was obtained:

Ethics Statement: This study was approved by [Name of Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board] under Approval No. [Approval Number]. Informed consent was obtained from all participants.

Example where formal approval was not required:

Ethics Statement: Formal ethics approval was not required for this study because [brief explanation]. The research was conducted in accordance with relevant ethical standards.

20. Data Availability Statement

Where applicable, authors should explain whether research data, field notes, interview materials, coding materials, movement records, documentation files, or other materials are available.

Example where data are available:

Data Availability: The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Example where data are not publicly available:

Data Availability: The data are not publicly available due to privacy, ethical, copyright, or cultural restrictions.

Example where data are not applicable:

Data Availability: Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated or analyzed during the current study.

21. Artificial Intelligence Use Statement

Authors must disclose the use of artificial intelligence tools where such tools have been used in writing, editing, translation, coding, data processing, image generation, or analysis.

Example where AI tools were used:

AI Use Statement: The author(s) used [name of tool] for [specific purpose, such as language editing or translation assistance]. The author(s) reviewed and verified all outputs and remain fully responsible for the content of the manuscript.

Example where AI tools were not used:

AI Use Statement: The author(s) declare that no artificial intelligence tools were used in the preparation, writing, analysis, or generation of this manuscript.

22. References

The journal uses the Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition. Authors may use either the notes and bibliography system or the author-date system, provided that the chosen style is used consistently throughout the manuscript.

All sources cited in the manuscript must be included in the reference list or bibliography. Authors should ensure that references are complete, accurate, and consistently formatted.

DOI links should be included where available.

23. Sample Manuscript Order

Authors may use the following order when preparing a manuscript:

1. Title
2. Abstract
3. Keywords
4. Main text
5. Acknowledgments, where applicable
6. Author Contribution Statement
7. Funding Statement
8. Conflict of Interest Statement
9. Ethics Statement, where applicable
10. Data Availability Statement, where applicable
11. AI Use Statement, where applicable
12. Notes, where applicable
13. References
14. Appendices, where applicable

24. Basic Formatting Requirements

• File format: Microsoft Word document
• Language: English
• Font: Times New Roman or another clear academic font
• Font size: 12-point
• Line spacing: double-spaced
• Margins: standard margins
• Page numbers: included where possible
• Headings: clear and consistent
• References: Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition

25. Editorial Note

This template is intended to guide authors in preparing manuscripts for submission. It does not replace the journal’s Author Guidelines, Submission Preparation Checklist, Publication Ethics policy, Peer Review Process, Copyright and Licensing policy, or APC & Waiver Policy.

The Editorial Office reserves the right to request formatting changes, additional statements, ethical clarification, copyright permissions, or structural revisions during the editorial assessment and production process.