Date of Award

Spring 5-16-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Major

Expressive Therapies

First Advisor

Wendy Allen, PhD, BC-DMT, LPC

Abstract

This thesis examines the relationship between memory, celebration, and collective experience, and proposes Memory Parties as a community mental health intervention for individuals with dementia, their families, and broader communities. Using a qualitative integrative literature review, this thesis synthesizes interdisciplinary research from dementia care, trauma studies, neurobiology, dance/movement therapy (DMT), cultural practices of ritual and celebration, and social psychology. The primary aim is to reconsider memory as an embodied, relational, and collective process rather than solely an individual cognitive function. Findings suggest that as cognitive and narrative memory change, individuals retain the capacity for emotional expression, relational engagement, and participation through movement and shared experience. Cultural traditions such as second lines and jazz funerals demonstrate how communities collectively hold memory and metabolize loss through structured forms of celebration. Empirical research on collective gatherings highlights the role of synchrony, shared attention, and emotional alignment in promoting wellbeing and social connection. DMT offers a clinical framework for facilitating these processes through movement, rhythm, and nonverbal communication. In response, this thesis proposes Memory Parties as an intervention that centers shared participation and collective engagement, allowing memory to be enacted rather than simply retrieved. By shifting from individual recall to shared remembering, Memory Parties offer an alternative model for supporting connection, meaning, and care in the context of memory change.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License.

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