The use of story and art therapy with children in treatment is explored in two case studies. Stories used as interventions for the participants include picture book stories and self- generated narratives. The study’s participants also created art responses that took forms as illustrations and self made books. Research questions that were investigated were: When children receiving art therapy engage with stories created by others, how did they respond? ; When children receiving art therapy create their own stories, how did they respond? ; What themes emerge in the art? Main subjects of the study were clients ages 6 and 8 receiving individual and family services from the therapist’s agency at The Whole Child. A case study approach was used to highlight themes and identify psychologically meaningful content in existing picture books for both participants. Biographical data and also responses to interventions were recorded in assessment and progress notes. Based on the results, the therapist found using picture books as interventions in therapy created a safe space where it helped clients to open up about personal feelings or situations that would be difficult to express or even discover on their own.

This paper is an exploration among low-income Latino adolescents, which seeks to explore the experiences and the stressors from immigration, acculturation, and bicultural identity through art. The participants selected from Dolores Mission Parish in Boyle Heights California, created a personal art piece and a collaborative installation. The art explores and expresses their personal journeys with acculturation and bicultural identity. Multiple sources of data were collected including daily observation, group discussions, individual artwork, collaborative installation, and photographs taken during the workshop; to gain an understanding of what acculturation means to adolescents, how this process effects their lives, their experiences with biculturalism, and the effects of a community arts based workshop. The data-collecting workshop was held on two Saturdays. This study uses qualitative methods; data analysis shows a positive impact in a community setting in the areas of self-confidence, self-expression, self-concept, community building, and processing hardships related to acculturation and bicultural identity. Research also shows the use of art as a creative expression is a positive outlet that allows adolescents to freely express and reflect on their experiences leading to increased self-confidence, and pride.

This paper examines the utilization of participants’ nightmares in art therapy to benefit treatment. The researcher utilized a self-study by means of making art about three of her own nightmares, followed by a comparative analysis in case studies. The researcher asked the participants to make art about a nightmare they reported they had while in a treatment session, and then provided them with the opportunity to alter the image for possible means of catharsis. The researcher then discussed the process with the participants in order to answer the research questions. The participants’ ages ranged from 6-15; with two males and a female included. Their diagnoses vary yet all participants had one thing in common: that they all suffer from nightmares. The research revealed the significance of utilizing nightmare processing in art therapy. The practice provides a client with means of sharing nightmares with another person, which may lead to topics never discussed in treatment, a deepened examination of symptoms, diagnoses and fears, and catharsis in the artistic process. The literature reveals that the existence of nightmares is symptomatic, but that the use of processing nightmares in therapy is found to be successful. There is little literature about research with use of nightmares in art therapy practice; therefore this paper is a contribution to the research drought pertaining to this area of the field.

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.

A qualitative, art-based research approach is used in this study to explore the relationship between trauma and eating disorders in art therapy treatment. The literature review illuminates the function, presentation, and treatment of eating disorders and trauma. Adolescent developmental challenges are discussed in relation to eating disorders, given that this is the period when the diagnosis manifests. The nominal research on the use of art therapy for underlying trauma with clients who are in treatment for eating disorders suggests the importance of considering the implications for the field of art therapy. Two-semi-structured, art-based interviews are the primary data gathering component in understanding the connection between eating disorders and trauma. An axial coding process is used to analyze the textual and visual data to reveal emergent themes. The results of the analysis process suggest that art, which bypasses verbal defenses, allows the client to access and externalize internal experiences such as trauma. The study also reveals the interconnected nature of eating disorders and trauma. The findings recommend future study of this relationship and the necessity of addressing significant traumatic experiences in addition to abuse and most importantly to acknowledge trauma as a primary focus of treatment.

This research explores the experience of stigma and its effect on identity formation in young adults who suffer from chronic mental illness. Data was gathered in the form of personal narratives and art-making through a a semi-structured, qualitative focus group. It was categorized and coded in order to better understand the experience of both public and internalized stigma in relation to the developmental milestones that characterize the important transition from adolescence to adulthood. Analysis of the data resulted in the emergence of three overarching themes: 1) The challenges of coping with a stigmatizing system, 2) Internalized stigma as it relates to the formation of adult identity, and 3) The use of art to combat stigma and facilitate self-discovery. These themes were examined against existing literature pertaining to the stigma of mental illness, identity formation in young adults, and the use of art to combat stigma and promote healthy identity. The findings of this research emphasize the insidious nature of stigma and ofer support for the ability of art-based programs to empower young adults who face the challenges of mental illness.

The principal objective of this paper is to explore attachment, empathy, and mentorship in a group of adolescents that participated in an art therapy based workshop. The premise for research formed when researchers participated in the week long Summer Arts Workshop (SAW) with Latino youth from a lower SES area in Los Angeles. Through the theoretical lens of attachment researchers inquired if participating in this workshop contributed to a corrective emotional experience due to the relationships with both peer and adult mentors. Utilizing the methodology of a focus group we collected data with an art therapy based directive, which aimed to uncover the impact the workshop had on the lives of four individuals who participated in the workshop each year. After the data was analyzed researchers found that SAW contributed to prosocial behavior by way of healthy attachment and increased empathic understanding. This paper supports ways community art outreach may prove to be a reparative experience for adolescents. This study may offer understandings to both therapists and educators interested in helping at-risk youth. Findings may support research indicating the artistic process enhances empathic understanding and healthy relationships with peers and adults.

This qualitative research study is informed by a grounded theory approach and explores the use of art therapy as a treatment for cumulative trauma. This paper reviews the current literature focusing on both cumulative trauma and related studies which address the nature and impact of “big T” and “little t” events and accumulated lifetime adversity. There are remarkably few studies which highlight the concept of cumulative trauma in both general psychology and art therapy literature, and there appear to be no existing studies addressing the treatment of the state of cumulative trauma to date. For this study, a series of interviews with three experienced art therapists is presented and accompanied by the researcher’s visual representations of the felt sense of each of the interviews. The artwork is used in conjunction with each of the interview transcriptions to guide the process of data analysis. Axial coding analysis of the artwork and interview data results in the groundbreaking development of an art therapy treatment approach for cumulative trauma in four phases. The theory addresses each trauma according to the client’s level of subjective distress. Through this theoretical model, the client’s state of “allostatic load,” which can be understood as a state of distress which surpasses the individual’s ability for adaptive coping, is addressed systematically according to the trauma that is felt to be most subjectively impactful to each individual client.

Our experiences over a lifetime are contained not only in our minds and psyches, but in the very structure of our bodies. Emotional pain can show up as blockage, restriction and habit patterns in both mind and body. Therefore, healing needs to take place on more than just the cognitive and mental levels; it needs to happen from the viscera of our beings, and from the unconscious realms into the conscious. In this heuristic study, I engaged material held more deeply inside myself by practicing yoga, making note of my dream material, and creating art. Used together, these practices had a powerful impact. Through them, I was able to gain insight into how I experience myself and the world, release some long and deeply-held pain, and experience healing around emotional issues. This experience provided emotional relief, and revealed resources and strengths I can draw on when I face future challenges. My hope is that it will help me in serving clients who are struggling with their own challenges.

The research objective of this qualitative case study was to explore how art interventions could be useful to teach at-risk adolescents how to identify with and develop, personal strengths and resilient qualities. The subjects in this study were receiving treatment in an outpatient mental health clinic for a variety of diagnoses and participated in a ten-week resiliency building art- therapy group. During the weekly sessions participants followed a specific protocol including psycho-education, art therapy interventions and processing of the art products. The art interventions were based on the literature and designed to develop personal strengths, self- reliance, self-discovery and communication, problem solving, flexibility, compassion and empathy, future planning and teamwork. The results indicate that at-risk adolescents are able to identify, discuss and develop solutions to their challenges using the art interventions and psycho- education and that the group art-therapy modality provides a unique tool to accelerate positive outcomes and resilience in an outpatient mental health setting.