Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

In-Between Space: Latinas Sharing Their Stories Of Cultural Integration, Maria Elena Fuster

Art Therapy | Doctoral Dissertations

This study explores how an art-based narrative allows Latinas to explore their own experiences of cultural integration in a way that honors their lived experience. The women used art materials to help them explore their identities and, through this process, discovered new truths about themselves through their stories of living between, within, and outside of both cultures. The art acted as a catalyst to express feelings the women had never before questioned or recognized in themselves and, in doing so, allowed them to create meaning and discover parts of their identities they had never explored before. This further allowed the …

The Course Of Covid: How Has The Pandemic Changed The Ways Therapists Use Art In Their Therapeutic Practice?, Deborah Sharpe

Art Therapy | Doctoral Dissertations

In 2020, the global pandemic fundamentally changed our everyday lives personally and professionally. The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of COVID-19 on the art therapy profession: the challenges of shifting to telehealth, managing work/life balance, confronting new realities around notions of privacy and confidentiality, and adapting the materials used in sessions. The necessary innovations and adjustments also revealed the unexpected benefits the pandemic and online therapy platforms provided. The researcher was interested in exploring the challenges and benefits of telehealth, the changes to the practical and essential qualities of the art therapy session, the therapeutic relationship, …

Clay Use As Mindfulness For Women In Early Substance Use Recovery, Cheryl Feldman

Art Therapy | Doctoral Dissertations

Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) are an epidemic in the United States comprising 4.4 million women, including high rates of recidivism, and often accompanied by comorbid mental health issues. Recognizing the need for effective tools to support women in recovery, this research aligns the key tenets of present focus and personal control within Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) with various established mindfulness-based therapies, while using a Positive Psychology framework to conceptualize strategies to help enhance mindfulness in women in early recovery. Although engaging in clay work has been linked to mindfulness for its capacity to foster a state of presence and self-centering, scant …

Exploring Whether A Collage Art Intervention Enhances Levels Of Resilience In Asian Americans Who Have Experienced Emotional Suppression, Casey Galaura

Art Therapy | Master's Theses

Emerging research has shown cross-cultural differences when coping with negative emotions (Yoshie & Sauter, 2020). The Asian American population uniquely experiences both western and eastern cultures, which have different ideologies around expressing negative emotions. In Eastern Cultures, it is common to suppress negative emotions, while Western cultures find it more accepting. Suppressing emotions is a form of emotional dysregulation and can cause a negative effect on one’s psychopathology. This mix-methods study explores whether collage art-based intervention enhances levels of resilience with Asian Americans who have experienced emotional suppression. The theoretical orientation, Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT), was used as a guide …

Exploring The Connection Between Social Media & Body-Image And The Impact Of Art Therapy Interventions On A Woman’S Self-Esteem, Courtney Engelhardt

Art Therapy | Master's Theses

This current study desired to illuminate the connection between social media and body image, as well as determining if art therapy interventions may impact a woman’s self-esteem. An individual’s body-image and self-esteem are very much correlated, as both concepts directly influence one another. Fourteen participants were recruited through social media after meeting the qualifications: being eighteen years old and/or older, identifying as a woman, and being active on social media. A mixed-methods research design was utilized for this research using both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Qualitative data was obtained through semi structured interviews, participant’s artwork, and reflections on their art. …

Altered Stories, Altered Lives: An Exploration Of Post Traumatic Growth From A Narrative Perspective With A Strengths Based Focus, Andrea Jones

Art Therapy | Master's Theses

Complex trauma is prevalent, underrecognized, and difficult to treat. Left untreated, the ongoing negative consequences impact individuals, families and society. Literature indicates traditional modes of treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder have high attrition rates and are ineffective for approximately 30% of clients (Schouten et al., 2018). Art Therapy provides the opportunity to offer effective, well tolerated treatment for ongoing adverse consequences of trauma symptoms and recontextualization of the trauma due to the highly nonverbal nature of trauma memory (Hass-Cohen et al., 2014). A nested mixed methods design (Neubauer et al., 2019) combining arts-based research with pre and posttest survey analysis …

Memes To Cope And Communicate, Priscilla (Nox) Ngo

Art Therapy | Master's Theses

The study’s objective was to observe the benefits of creating meme imagery around the participant’s stressors and how it affected the participants’ mood. This mixed-method study also looked into the meme’s ability to communicate their experience of their stressor to others to test whether it would be useful in a therapeutic setting. In order to measure affect change, the researcher utilized the PANAS (Positive and Negative Affect Schedule) before and after the meme creation process. The researcher tested communication through utilization of inter-raters to observe the created meme and respond upon what they believed the participant was going through. This …

Evoking The Art Of Nature, Tessa R. Evans Keime

Art Therapy | Master's Theses

This international study aimed to investigate the therapeutic potential of nature-based art therapy, an innovative approach that combines artmaking with the healing power of nature. The research aimed to examine the synergistic effects of nature and artmaking, as well as the impact of the eco-art experience on adult individuals' connectedness to nature, emotional well-being, and existential understanding, while addressing gaps in literature.

Employing an arts-based research design, participants took part in a nature-art-making session, and their experiences were evaluated through pre- and post-art questionnaires, as well as an analysis of their artistic creations by trained inter-raters. The nature art-based experience …

Cultural Identity Of And Implications For Later Generational Hispanic And Latino Populations In The United States, Tara Bustamante

Art Therapy | Master's Theses

This study explores the Hispanic and Latino/x/e cultures within the United States, with a particular focus on the concept of identity within these communities and its implications for third and later generations. Data were collected during the pandemic via an online survey and art directive. The student researcher used the Identity Denial Scale (Albuja et al., 2019) to measure how often the participants’ identity is denied within the United States and then used an art therapy prompt to invite participants to create their own self-portrait in conjunction with their authentic self and self-image. Qualitative data were also used in response …