ABSTRACT
Co-authored by Improving Social Inclusion for People with Dementia and Carers through Sharing Dance project researchers with emerging and established expertise in arts-based ageing, dementia care, and health research, the aim of this chapter is to consider how and why the arts, and dance in particular, enrich older people’s lives. The chapter briefly outlines dominant (positivistic and outcome-focused) approaches to arts for ageing and health research and presents theoretical approaches, specifically relational care, and embodied expression, that can enhance understandings of how the arts support health and well-being. The conversation between the chapter’s two authors advances arguments about the value of the arts for ageing and health by articulating the potential of dance to support human flourishment. It is of particular interest to gerontologists and arts-based ageing researchers.
