This arts-based and quantitative study looked at the effects of reflective art making as a tool for stress reduction, clinical insight and therapist identity formation. Research was completed by three Loyola Marymount University, art therapy graduate students. Data was collected over nine sessions consisting of inventory scores from the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-Y), as well as artwork made in response to each participant’s client presentation. The research questions answered were: How does the reflective art-making process inform clinical identity as an art therapist? What effect did regular self-exploration have on burnout for the art therapist, as indicated by scores on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-Y) (Spielberger, 1983)? How was the process for each participant? Thematic analysis was used to identify themes and patterns within the data. Major findings suggest that reflective art making is a promising intervention for clinical insight, and art therapists’ identity formation. Furthermore, while the number of participants was not large enough to show statistical significance, there was a general decrease in anxiety among nearly all participants from the pre-test to the post-test. Practice implications are proposed and recommendations for further research are offered.

This research served to visualize levels of family satisfaction and quality of life in families with an Autistic member(s). Art-based qualitative survey was the primary method of gathering data. The vast majority of the literature on autism focused on the treatment of the child, yet some literature suggested a re-focusing on the family as the unit of treatment may improve family satisfaction and quality of life. Taking this into consideration this research explored how parents experience family satisfaction through written and visual responses. The theme of independence for the child with autism was present in all five visual responses which suggested a desire to see their child functioning autonomously. Due to the inherit bias of therapy’s affect on relationships it was surprising that approximately half of the participants reported not experiencing a change in their relationship with their child after treatment. Both the data gathered and the literature reviewed lead to the research conclusion that the caregivers of a child with Autism experience a higher level of family satisfaction when they are flexible and gain support from mental health services and a community of family and friends.

This phenomenological study examines the impact image-making experiences had on the leadership restructuring of a women’s religious congregation. Six Catholic women religious ranging in ages 65-85 participated in an arts-based workshop informed by art therapy theories to explore the meaning of making art during their Province Chapter meetings in which leadership restructuring was on the agenda. In addition, 42 of the 80 Province Chapter delegates responded to a survey about their experience. The data collected includes the survey, the workshop process, the images made by the six participants, their verbal sharing about their image, and their written reflections. Five common themes emerged from the study which speak to the impact the imagemaking process had on the organization’s leadership restructuring. Increased participation, enhanced communication, emergence of new ideas and insights, awareness of feelings, and embracing a sense of mystery or unknowing each affected the re-organizational process in a different way. The findings imply that art therapy theories and art therapists can benefit not only individuals in the clinical setting but also organizations and communities.

This qualitative research looked at the relational dynamics and attachment styles of research participants through individual and dyadic art-making tasks. This research is a replication study of Snir & Wiseman’s (2010) research on Attachment in Romantic Couples and Perceptions of a Joint Drawing Session. In this particular research, three couples completed a demographic questionnaire, the ECR-S, the DAS, an individual art-making task, and a joint nonverbal drawing task with their partner, followed by a verbal reflection facilitated by researchers. Researchers found patterns suggesting attachment style may be correlated with an individual’s cultural background, relationship satisfaction, past relationship experience, and the dyadic art making process and product. Limitations and considerations were further discussed for future research.

This qualitative research aimed to explore how art therapy may enhance attunement when working with families who have involvement with Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). The study utilized a focus group methodology to examine the experience of two art therapists with backgrounds in treating families involved with DCFS. Through the analysis of the participants’ discussion, artwork and reflections, several subsequent emergent themes were revealed. These themes exposed various barriers within the system that may complicate the therapeutic relationship, as well as qualities within the art process, which act as an equalizer and source of containment. These themes illuminated findings that support the role of art in building attunement, as well as questions for future research regarding families with child welfare involvement.

A six week self-study was conducted to explore the use of regular contemplative practice and art-making to examine effects on the life of an art therapy graduate student. This study examined a three-fold inquiry regarding the use of contemplative practices, namely Buddhist meditation, as well as weekly reflective art making to broaden self-knowledge and enhance general wellbeing. Further implications of the use of contemplative practice and reflective art making were reviewed for clinical application in the field of art therapy, both for the client and art therapist.

This paper investigates how the meditation practice and the self-reflective art of an art therapy trainee informed clinical work with an adolescent client. The self-reflective process included Jon Kabat-Zinn’s 29-minute body scan meditation, a review of the client’s artwork, and a response painting. This course of action was documented in a visual journal form. A hermeneutic interviewing process, or a process of open-ended questioning and dialogue, was used to find out whether or not the therapist’s understanding of the client’s experience matched with his own understanding. His responses were utilized to examine the validity of the findings. The findings support the concept of art psychotherapy as an advantageous approach to opening communication with adolescents because of its ability to permeate defenses (Linesch, 1988; Wadeson, 2010). They also support the idea that responsive art-making increases the empathic response of the therapist (Moon, 1999) and awareness of counter-transference issues (Franklin, 1999). Additionally, meditation facilitated the reflective art process by promoting clarity, focus, and authenticity, and thus, greater insight. There is limited research about the integration of meditative practices in art therapy. The research also indicates that attuned suggestion, although based on the therapist’s subjective experience, encourages the client’s sense of feeling understood. The field of art therapy would benefit from more research about methods of interpretation that avoid the arrogance of assumption. More self-reflective research is needed in our field because these methods increase the competence of practitioners.

This paper is an exploration of how art therapy informed by studio practices plays a role in addressing the challenges of immigration and acculturation, specifically looking at women from Latin America. This also investigates the mental health needs of immigrant Latina women particularly struggling with acculturation. The seven women participants were selected from Dolores Mission Parish in Los Angeles, California. The women created art on two Saturdays in response to the directive presented by the researcher, involving the exploration of their individual journey and experience of immigration and acculturation. The art was studied in a qualitative method with a presentation of the art, the analysis and the findings. The art demonstrates that the creative process can create a sense of community, a feeling of empowerment, and act as a catharsis, or “desahogo”, in relieving psychological distress from the acculturation process.

Through the lens of a participatory design (PD) approach, this study explored to find qualifying features and qualities of digital art materials, specifically art apps on iPads for art therapy use. The study comprised of two phases: 1) a questionnaire/interview of four art therapists using iPads with clients and 2) four separate focus groups with 15 art therapist and art therapist trainee participants involving multiple stages of cyclic feedback. The focus groups engaged in art directives with nine art making apps identified by the researcher and questionnaire respondents as potentially useful in art therapy. The results revealed that while there was no single commercial art app that satisfied the needs of all art therapists and vast range of clients’ technology skills, artistic abilities, stylistic preferences, and therapeutic needs, three distinct qualities and six concrete features of an “ideal” art app for art therapy use emerged. Additionally, the study’s results expanded the parameters of art therapy’s artmaking practice and visual vocabulary by illustrating digital art media’s potential therapeutic and expressive use. And most importantly, the protection of privacy and confidentiality of client’s digital artwork emerged as one of the most important issue to consider. While this paper discusses the limitless possibilities of digital art media’s meaningful usage in art therapy, it also acknowledges how its unique characteristics may require thoughtful limitations and restrictions.

This research explores the therapeutic characteristics of the art‟s sensory properties in art therapy treatment for children with developmental trauma. The researcher used interview as a method for gathering data in the qualitative research design. Two art therapists were interviewed individually in order to gain a deeper understanding about the research topic. The participants were selected based on their knowledge and practice utilizing art therapy in cases related to developmental trauma. The data gathered were coded and analyzed for emergent findings. The researcher finds that sensory-based art therapy facilitates regulation of affect and behavior, attachment repair, and the potential to process trauma memory through regression in the art. Also, the therapist‟s role as a witness for the client and a provider of a safe holding space is found to be a crucial component in sensory-based art therapy. These findings suggest implications for clinical practice and the careful construction of sensory-based art therapy according to the client‟s developmental age. Regression stimulated by loose art media may be a key component of trauma treatment. In order to regulate a child‟s affect and behavior, the art material and its quantity must be carefully selected based on its inherent sensory properties. Containment and attachment repair as the overarching goals of the art therapy treatment may also influence the selection of which art materials may be utilized. The researcher recommends a broader research study to explore treatment implications concerning sensory-based art interventions for children with developmental trauma.