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Could salsa dancing help young adults experiencing depressive symptoms feel better?
A new randomised controlled trial led by researchers at the University of Oxford’s Department of Psychiatry and Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust suggests it may offer a promising, accessible addition to youth wellbeing support.
The study, part funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre (BRC): Oxford Health Pump Priming Grant, tested an eight-week salsa dance programme for 18- to 24-year-olds with mild to moderately severe depressive symptoms. A total of 121 participants were recruited and randomly assigned either to the salsa classes or to a waitlist control group, with mental health measures completed before, during and after the programme. The findings were published in the journal Psychological Medicine.
Participants who took part in salsa showed a significantly greater reduction in depressive symptoms than those on the waitlist. By the final assessment, the difference between groups was equivalent to a 2.45-point change on the PHQ-9 depression scale, exceeding the threshold considered clinically meaningful. The salsa group also reported greater reductions in social anxiety and a steeper increase in daily happiness.
Lead author, doctoral researcher Brennan Delattre, said: "Depression is unfortunately both common and rising in young people, and many don’t receive support that feels accessible, appealing, or designed with them in mind.
Brennan Delattre salsa dancing with dance partner James
The results of this study were encouraging, with young people who took part in the salsa classes showing a significantly greater reduction in depressive symptoms and social anxiety and increases in happiness over time. These findings are noteworthy because, as salsa is physical, social, musical, structured, and often playful, it asks people to engage with others, but within a clear framework: steps, patterns, partner rotation, and a predictable class routine. For some people, this may make social contact feel more manageable than an unstructured social group setting.
While salsa dancing is not a replacement for other types of mental health care, nor will it be the right fit for everyone, our findings suggest that social dance deserves serious attention as part of a broader menu of wellbeing support for young people.”
The intervention was developed with input from young people through a Patient and Participant Involvement process, which helped researchers choose salsa as an acceptable and appealing form of social dance. Feedback from participants suggested the classes were broadly acceptable, with many valuing the friendly instructors, welcoming atmosphere and sense of motivation to attend. Importantly, no participants reported the intervention as unacceptable.
Co-author Professor Susannah Murphy, from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford, said:
Too often, there is a gap between the mental health support available and the kinds of activities young people feel motivated to engage with. BRC Pump Priming funding enabled us to test an intervention that was designed with young people, rather than simply for them. These encouraging findings suggest that something as enjoyable and accessible as social dance could one day become part of a broader toolkit for supporting young people’s mental health alongside existing treatments."
The authors caution that the study was not conducted with a sample diagnosed via clinical interviews and used a waitlist, rather than an active control group, meaning further research is needed. However, they say the findings support social dance as a scalable, low-cost and enjoyable approach that could be explored alongside existing wellbeing programmes in community, university and healthcare settings, including the NHS, where more evidence could guide future delivery and implementation decisions locally.