Art Therapy Commons^™

An Art Therapy Intervention To Help Military Children Cope With Parental Deployment, Eleanor Kai Lampell

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Research regarding military children and their ability to cope with parental deployment is extensive. However, research dealing with art therapy and military children is limited. The purpose of this study was to explore the benefits of participating in group art therapy interventions for military children with a parent currently on deployment. Five group art therapy sessions were conducted with two military children with a parent currently in stage two of parental deployment. It was hypothesized that through participating in group art therapy, military children with a parent who is currently deployed would have a reduction of problematic behaviors in a …

An Exploration Of Artists’ Use Of Color, Kate Horn

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

The use of color creates a varied reaction from person to person within the human experience. Color has been theorized to have many different symbolic meanings. However, no definitive link between color and symbolic meaning has been found. Research about human response to color has been examined in relation to cognitive, psychological, and physiological effects. Within the field of art therapy, color is important for understanding the client’s view. However, the art therapist’s interpretation of client color use may be based on myths perpetrated in the field. In-depth interviews of three professional artists were done in order to explore the …

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder And Art Making, Kelly Andrews

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Over the course of history war has brought death and destruction to the men and women who have had to partake in combat. Through advances in technology more soldiers are able to return home alive, however they are not always physically or mentally intact. There are a large number of men and women returning home from the current conflict in the Middle East with increased Posttraumatic Stress Disorder symptoms. Those who return home as amputees will most likely have amplified PTSD symptoms as they are not only returning home with mental scars, but physical wounds.

The psychological impact of war …

An Investigation Into The Coming-Out Experience For Families Of Homosexuals: Understanding Through Personal Artmaking And Dialogue, Micah Bennett

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

A review of the literature indicated the lack of art therapy research with homosexuals and their families. The need for research into the implications for the use of art processes and materials to assist in the coming-out process of families of self-disclosed homosexuals was established. A qualitative hermeneutic method of research was initially proposed to study this need. Volunteer participants who were parents or adult relatives of self-disclosed homosexuals would participate in an audio-videotaped workshop to include three art-making exercises intended to evoke expressions of the participants’ experiences of the coming-out process. Data would have consisted of the researcher’s written …

Color In Children’S Human Figure Drawings, Melanie Metelsky

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Color is an important part of our everyday lives and its use in art-based assessment is theorized to relate to aspects of emotional, cognitive, social, and physical development. The Human Figure Drawing (HFD) is a highly utilized projective technique that is also theorized to be related to these areas of development. However, there is little research regarding the use of color in HFDs, particularly in respect to children’s drawings.

This study explored whether or not there is a relationship between children’s age and their use of color in the HFD. This is important to art therapists and other clinicians in …

Art Therapy And Sensory Stimulation To Decrease Agitation: A Pilot Study, Leslie Cristen Lavergne

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Dementia affects 1% of older adults in America between the ages of 65 and 74 years, and increases to 10% in those 85 years and older. The cognitive and behavioral symptoms of dementia may restrict an individuals ability to perform activities of daily living, such as self-care, memory, and language. The literature supports the premise that individuals who have dementia can benefit from a treatment approach that focuses on medication regulation, as well as mental stimulation. This study was an art therapy and sensory stimulation intervention designed to reduce agitation, a common non-cognitive symptom of dementia. This study included five …

Professional Outcomes Of Eastern Virginia Medical School Art Therapy Graduates, Heather Tyng

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

In 1982, Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) awarded the first art therapy graduate with a Master’s Degree. Since then there have been 202 graduates through 2004.

The EVMS art therapy program has had no detailed or current information regarding the professional outcomes of its alumni. This lack of information created a need to survey EVMS art therapy graduates to determine how their careers have progressed to this point.

A survey was designed to investigate the professional outcomes of the EVMS art therapy alumni and to determine their opinions of the strengths and weaknesses of the EVMS art therapy curriculum. Of …

Art Therapists’ Response To Countertransference: An Exploratory Study, Rachael Smith

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

This qualitative study explored five practicing art therapists’ common countertransferential reactions and the methods used to attend to their countertransference. Data was collected by recorded interviews, which were reviewed and transcribed using the note-and-quote method. The content was analyzed according to theoretical constructs of The Countertransference Questionnaire, Index of Countertransference Behaviors, and Racker (1968). Disengaged countertransferential reactions were reported most often, followed by special/overinvolved and helpless/inadequate. The researcher found art making a valuable tool for proper identification of countertransference. Themes of decreasing the intensity of countertransference and personal/professional development were motivations for attending to countertransference. This study suggests that identifying …

Stress Management Through Art-Making, Karina Schwarz

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Stress is a natural and necessary part of everyday existence; the symptoms related to stress are unavoidable and systemic (Frey, 2001). Acute and chronic stress can adversely affect individuals both physically and emotionally. The literature gives evidence that medical school students are not provided with the adequate tools needed to cope with stress. This study was an art-making intervention designed to decrease stress among medical students. There were 24 participants, 19 women and 5 men enrolled in the Doctor of Medicine program at Eastern Virginia Medical School. The participants completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) to measure their levels of …

Characteristics Of Human Figure Drawings Created By Students With Learning Disabilities, Monika L. Isip

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Previous research concerning the artistic indicators of learning disabilities has yielded inconsistent results. Children with learning disabilities comprise a heterogeneous population, with diverse strengths and challenges. There has been a lack of research on the graphic indicators of learning disabilities, which takes this diversity into account. This study aimed at exploring the characteristics of Human Figure Drawings (HFDs) created by students with learning disabilities.

The study examined the HFDs of 2 Virginia Beach Public School 2nd graders who were identified by their parents as having learning disabilities; one child’s disability was described as being a decoding deficit and the other …

The Healing Potential Of Art: A Psychobiographical Study Of Three Artists, Amy Reahard

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

The statement that art in itself is healing may not always be true as demonstrated by the destructive, often short lives of many artists. This may appear to contradict the fundamental belief, held by many art therapists, that art is healing. Studying the fields of creativity and art history could help understand this apparent contradiction.

One way to combine the studies of creativity, the healing power of art, and art history is through the practice of psychobiography. The psychobiographer who studies the life of a prominent artist combines various psychological approaches with the literary records, art history, and visual evidence …

The Effects Of Music On Art Making With Older Adults, Gertrude W. Goodwin

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

It is projected that by 2030, older adults will make up 69.4 million of the population in the United States (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2001). The basic physical, mental, and emotional needs of these older adults must be addressed to ensure an adequate quality of life. Quality of life refers to the degree needs are being met as well as the person’s perception and satisfaction with life. As the population ages there is an increased expectation for a higher quality of life because older adults are healthier, more active, and living longer. The therapeutic use of art and music …

Art Therapy With Adults With Autism, Kimberly Dennler

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Research regarding art therapy with adults with autism is limited. The objective of this study was to understand the effect of a specific art therapy intervention upon social interaction and communication of the adults with autism. The hypothesis was that by participating in this intervention, the participants’ communication and socialization would increase and their maladaptive behaviors would decrease. Over a series of nine sessions, the five participants from Bittersweet Farms were introduced to basic techniques for working with clay.

Results were based on qualitative analysis of data from staff surveys, through the use of pre and post questionnaires; observations made …

Implications For Using Transpersonal Art Therapy With African Americans, Robin Coley Wooling

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Very little art therapy literature on racial and cultural themes exists. The purpose of this study was to expand on the literature that explores the use of art therapy with African Americans. The goal of this study was to determine if transpersonal art therapy would be an appropriate modality for working with African Americans.

Interaction with art materials, especially among adults, seems to be universal. Adults are initially nervous about their artistic abilities, but once at ease, are able to communicate their thoughts and feelings using the art media. In this study, the workshop participants’ reactions to using art materials …

Perceptions Of Art Therapy As Portrayed Through The Media, Heidi Torres

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to understand the perception of art therapy as portrayed through the media. Two studies were conducted with two facilitated via online surveys and one focus group. All participants were college students from Eastern Virginia Medical School and Old Dominion University. A sample of 14 volunteers participated. It was hypothesized that adolescents from both groups would use art as an effective and desirable means of personal communication and expression.

Results are based on qualitative analysis of data from two questionnaires, pre and post, which included perceptions toward art therapy prior to viewing media sources and …

Using The Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory-School Form, House-Tree-Person And Person Picking A Mango From A Tree In Salvadorian Children, Ana Enosensia De Ocampo

Art Therapy | Master's Theses in Print

The purpose of this study is to investigate the validity of the House Tree Person and Person Picking a Mango from a Tree as measured by FEATS as measures of self-esteem by comparing the results to the Coopersmith Self- Esteem Inventory - School Form (SEI-SF). In addition, the researcher hopes to obtain a better understanding of Salvadorian children's self-esteem. Forty male and female Salvadorian student ages 8-11 years-old participated in this study. They were first administered the Coopersmith SEI-SF to determine levels of global self-esteem, followed by instructions to draw in pencil a House, Tree and Person. Lastly, participants were …

Is This A Mirror I See Before Me?: Adolescent Girls Use Imaginal Writing To Re-Vision Life Experience: A Dissertation, Cameron L. Marzelli

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

This participant observer collective case study was an investigation of the ways in which an imaginal writing process might facilitate resilience in adolescent girls who had previously used writing to respond to challenging life experience.