This diploma thesis deals with the theme of horticultural therapy in the Czech Republic. The thesis is especially focused on the utilization of this therapy with seniors. The theoretical part contains chapters dealing with age, needs, and horticultural therapy, which is an effective way of meeting the needs of the elderly. The horticultural therapy is presented from the historical point of view. In addition the state of the horticultural therapy in Czech Republic is described in general. Furthermore this chapter describes the usage of the horticultural therapy abroad. Key features of the horticultural therapy are presented in order to ensure effectiveness of this method. Therapeutic gardens are defined in this part, as well as key differences between horticultural therapy and other generally used therapeutic approaches. The research is based on semi-structured interviews with relevant persons in the Czech Republic. The interviews were conducted with three groups of people. The first group consists from individuals who are mainly oriented in the theoretical level of horticultural therapy. For example they have an overview of the state of horticultural therapy in the Czech Republic, especially in the realization of horticultural therapy or legislative issues. The second group are those who practice...

Background: Art therapeutic intervention has already been part of complex therapeutic programs in institutional treatment of addictive disorders in the Czech Republic for several decades already. However, the form of art therapy is neither codified, nor is there a universally accepted education system. In 2017, the profession of an art therapist was removed from the list of non-medical professions in the field of health care. Aims: To describe how an art therapeutic program is implemented in selected institutional addiction treatment facilities in terms of formal status, documentation, processes, personnel and team collaboration. Methods: Qualitative analysis focused on the treatment program was applied. Five addiction treatment facilities were selected, and cooperation with nine respondents - employees of these facilities - was established. These respondents were selected both intentionally and by self-selection. Semi-structured interviews with art therapists (five respondents) and their collaborators (four respondents) and available written documents anchoring clinical practice were used to obtain data. Results: Art therapy is clearly defined and distinguished from activity and work therapies in the selected facilities. The art therapeutic program is usually carried out once a week mandatory for...

Background: For several decades already, art therapeutic interventions have been part of complex therapeutic programs in institutional treatment of addictive disorders, both domestic and foreign. The concept of the art therapy oscillates between artistic symbolic expression, the art of therapy and clinical practice, where new approaches are being developed on the basis of target groups or therapeutic starting points. Aims: To map the implementation and concept of the art therapeutic component of the program in institutional treatment of addictions. Other sub-objectives are also addressed. Methods: In this qualitative study, preparation and process evaluations focused on therapeutic activity are applied. The sample was selected by self-selection and purposive sampling and contains nine workers from five institutions focused on treatment of addictions. Available documents related to the practice of art therapy and semi-structured interviews with art therapists and their collaborators were used to obtain the data. Text data from documents and transcripts of interviews was processed using the content analysis method with emphasis on ethical aspects especially in the field of data anonymization. Results: The art therapy program usually takes place once a week obligatorily, art therapists are mainly...

I den här kvalitativa intervjustudien undersöker jag med diskurspsykologiska metoder deattityder som bildlärare och bildterapeuter har kring tanken på eventuella införande avbildterapeutiska metoder i skolan och bildundervisningen. Syftet med studien är att utforskatvå olika diskurser, det bildpedagogiska och det bildterapeutiska och dess eventuella plats iskolan. I studien uttrycker yrkeskunniga människor i bildterapi och dels bildpedagogik sinaföreställningar av att använda bildterapeutiska metoder i bildämnet och skolan, samt sinametoder för att främja elevers hälsa i sin undervisning.Utifrån de diskurser som kan utläsas i några bildterapeuters och bildlärares tal om möjlighetenatt tillämpa bildterapeutiska metoder i bildundervisningen och skolan kom jag fram till attsamtliga informanter tar ställning för det bildpedagogiska perspektivet istället för detbildterapeutiska. Vilket innebär att informanterna bygger på det bildpedagogiska perspektivetatt bildterapeutiska metoder inte hör hemma i bildundervisningen utan hos elevhälsansskolkurator. Några bildlärarinformanter presenterar en utopiskola som har en öppenverkstad/ateljérum som påminner om bildterapeutens. Det här rummet tillskrivs som en platsdär eleverna kan skapa kravlöst utan betyg och fritt skapande där en vuxen medmaterialkännedom arbetar. I mitt gestaltande arbete har jag bjudit in människor till ettliknande rum där jag upplevde att en god stämning och avslappnande samtal fick fortgåmedan deltagarna målade, en del behöll tankarna kring sin bildvärld för sig själv medan andravar mer öppna.

Although research has been conducted on journaling, spirituality and art making separately, few studies investigate the potential for these modalities when combined together in a therapeutic context. This investigation explored the way that combining art making and journaling can contribute to spiritual growth and development during times of transformation. Specifically, by using self study and archival research approaches to conduct a systematic analysis of 5 of my previous journals and 5 of my previous art pieces which were created during times of transformation. Components illustrating spiritual growth such as contemplation, awareness, meaning making, connection, externalization, values and beliefs (Aten, 2011; Bryne & McKinlay, 2012; Hieb, 2005; Wiggins, 2011) were indicated. During this investigation, spirituality was examined through transpersonal and existential perspectives. The findings of this study suggest that examining a person’s core values, beliefs and how they seek meaning and connection with others is beneficial because it may be the source of unproductive thoughts, behaviors and feelings which motivate an individual to seek psychotherapeutic treatment. This study also illuminates the potential for spiritual development and maturation in spaces of disconnection.

This research study explored the integration of Art Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to treat clients with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The study explored how art therapy and EMDR can be combined effectively. First, a literature review investigated previous research connecting trauma and its neurological impact, as well as the subsequent causes, symptoms and criteria for PTSD, as well as the connection between neurobiology to art therapy and EMDR. Second, an in-depth interview with a licensed MFT and registered art therapist who is also a certified EMDR practitioner portrays the ways combining art therapy and EMDR to treat clients with PTSD can be done, and how a therapist experienced effectiveness of this treatment, its purpose, techniques, as well as the benefits and challenges of integrating these two treatment can inform others. Information gathered from the interview was transcribed, systematically categorized, and analyzed, resulting in three overarching themes; incorporating the body and mind, combining techniques of Art Therapy and EMDR and populations treated with this integrative modality. Third, a discussion of findings within the context of the larger literature review expanded the meaning of these findings, offering considerations for future clinical applications and research in the young field of integrative trauma treatment.

This study endeavors to explore the use of Helen B. Landgarten’s Family Art Assessment as a consultation service, in community mental health clinic settings. This research is a continuation of a pilot project initiated by director of the Helen B. Landgarten Art Therapy Clinic, Dr. Paige Asawa, MFT, ATR-BC, in which Dr. Asawa implemented the Landagarten Family Art Assessment at a local clinic with five families. The initial results of that study were examined and analyzed by Meirav Haber, who used a survey and an art response component to document the participants’ experience. In this study, a focus group was conducted, which consisted of various stakeholders in the agency from administration to the clinicians who participated in the initial pilot project. They shared their thoughts and feelings about the experience in a semi-structured conversational setting. The focus group recording was transcribed and analyzed into three themes: procedural recommendations, assessment conceptualizations, and therapeutic relationship indications. This indication pertained to the formation and stability of the therapeutic relationship between the family and its primary clinician, which must exist prior to conducting the Family Art Assessment. A synthesis of the existing protocol, focus group conversation, and the literature reveals that it is beneficial to have both the assessing art therapist and the primary clinician present in the therapy room during the consultation of the Family Art Assessment, in order for the results of the assessment to be as authentic and valid as possible. These results may contribute to a better understanding of the possibilities of having art therapy consultations as this local clinic, and to promote collaboration between art therapists and mental health professionals.

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.

This paper is a personal account of the discoveries made during a heuristic study in which the researcher sought to deepen her understanding of the difficulties of ending treatment with adolescent male clients as a female art therapist in training. Through the analysis of reflective artwork created during and after termination at a boys’ home, the researcher uncovered multiple themes as they related to the therapeutic relationship, attachment, transference/countertransference, dreams, vicarious trauma, self-care, and the ambiguity of termination. After reviewing the potential dangers of harmful termination and the paucity of literature on its effect on at-risk youth in group homes, this researcher chose to explore the personal meaning of this topic utilizing heuristic and arts-based methodologies. The process of data collection followed Moustakas’s six heuristic steps, corresponding to each day of the week. Each week, an archival termination art piece was analyzed and a corresponding questionnaire composed of four research questions and an art response was completed. After four weeks of data collection, two cumulative art pieces were finished to summarize research findings. Further dissection of the collective data was completed through a theoretical lens of attachment theory. Results suggested that reflective art making was proven useful to this researcher as a living record of the termination process and therapeutic relationship. To encourage self-care, deeper introspection, and monitoring of one’s expectations of termination, this creative modality could be utilized by other art therapists to externalize, cope with vicarious trauma, contain and process the complicated feelings of letting go.