Formal elements are often used in art therapy assessment. The assumption is that formal elements are observable aspects of the art product that allow reliable and valid assessment of clients’ mental health. Most of the existing art therapy assessment instruments are based on clinical expertise. Therefore, it is not clear to what degree these instruments are restricted to formal elements. Other aspects might also be included, such as clinical expertise of the therapist. This raises the question of whether and how formal elements as observable aspects of the art product are related to clients’ mental health. To answer this question, four studies are presented that look at: (1) a meta-theoretical description of formal elements; (2) operationalization of these formal elements so they can be analyzed reliably in clients’ art products; (3) establishment of reliable and clinically relevant formal elements; (4) the relationship between formal elements and adult clients’ mental health. Results show that the combination of the formal elements “movement,” “dynamic,” and “contour” are significantly interrelated and related to clients’ mental health, i.e., psychopathology, psychological flexibility, experiential avoidance, and adaptability. These findings give insight in the diagnostic value of art products and how they may add to clients’ verbal expression and indicate their potential to benefit from therapy.
Research showed that more than 30% of patients with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) do not benefit from evidence- based treatments: Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). These are patients with prolonged and multiple traumatization, with poor verbal memory, and patients with emotional over-modulation. Retelling traumatic experiences in detail is poorly tolerated by these patients and might be a reason for not starting or not completing the recommended treatments. Due to lack of evidence, no alternative treatments are recommended yet. Art therapy may offer an alternative and suitable treatment, because the nonverbal and experiential character of art therapy appears to be an appropriate approach to the often wordless and visual nature of traumatic memories. The objective of this pilot study was to test the acceptability, feasibility, and applicability of trauma-focused art therapy for adults with PTSD due to multiple and prolonged traumatization (patients with early childhood traumatization and refugees from different cultures). Another objective was to identify the preliminary effectiveness of art therapy. Results showed willingness to participate and adherence to treatment of patients. Therapists considered trauma-focused art therapy feasible and applicable and patients reported beneficial effects, such as more relaxation, externalization of memories and emotions into artwork, less intrusive thoughts of traumatic experiences and more confidence in the future. The preliminary findings on PTSD symptom severity showed a decrease of symptoms in some participants, and an increase of symptoms in other participants. Further research into the effectiveness of art therapy and PTSD is needed.
Art therapy is widely used and effective in the treatment of patients diagnosed with Personality Disorders (PDs). Current psychotherapeutic approaches may benefit from this additional therapy to improve their efficacy. But what is the patient perspective upon this therapy? This study explored perceived benefits of art therapy for patients with PDs to let the valuable perspective of patients be taken into account. Using a quantitative survey study over 3 months (N = 528), GLM repeated measures and overall hierarchical regression analyses showed that the majority of the patients reported quite a lot of benefit from art therapy (mean 3.70 on a 5-point Likert scale), primarily in emotional and social functioning. The improvements are concentrated in specific target goals of which the five highest scoring goals affected were: expression of emotions, improved (more stable/positive) self-image, making own choices/autonomy, recognition of, insight in, and changing of personal patterns of feelings, behaviors and thoughts and dealing with own limitations and/or vulnerability. Patients made it clear that they perceived these target areas as having been affected by art therapy and said so at both moments in time, with a higher score after 3 months. The extent of the perceived benefits is highly dependent for patients on factors such as a non-judgmental attitude on the part of the therapist, feeling that they are taken seriously, being given sufficient freedom of expression but at the same time being offered sufficient structure and an adequate basis. Age, gender, and diagnosis cluster did not predict the magnitude of perceived benefits. Art therapy provides equal advantages to a broad target group, and so this form of therapy can be broadly indicated. The experienced benefits and the increase over time was primarily associated with the degree to which patients perceive that they can give meaningful expression to feelings in their artwork. This provides an indication for the extent of the benefits a person can experience and can also serve as a clear guiding principle for interventions by the art therapist.
266 woorden Op school kan de situatie zich voordoen dat de leerkracht onvoldoende tegemoet kan komen aan de extra ondersteuning die leerlingen met autisme nodig hebben. De klas kan te groot zijn, de leerkracht kan handelingsverlegen zijn, etc.. In dit projectplan wordt onderbouwd wat de relevantie is voor de dagelijkse praktijk van de leerkracht en de leerling met autisme en daaraan gerelateerde problemen. Tevens wordt onderbouwd waarom beeldende therapie theoretisch en empirisch kan bijdragen als creatieve oplossing voor kinderen met aan autisme gerelateerde problemen die in de klas extra aandacht vragen. Deze kinderen hebben een andere manier van informatie verwerken, kunnen zich vaak verbaal moeilijk uiten en hebben vaak sociale problemen. Deze kinderen lopen risico op verslavingsproblematiek (33%) en eenzaamheid, angst en depressie op volwassen leeftijd (80%). Kunstvormen in een leeromgeving bieden andere mogelijkheden voor kinderen om zich te uiten en om samen te werken. In dit projectplan wordt beschreven waarom het zinvol is te onderzoeken wat de effectiviteit is van beeldende therapie voor kinderen met autisme in primair (speciaal) onderwijs, ter preventie van risicogedrag. Het behandelprogramma ‘Zelf in beeld, beeldende therapie voor kinderen met autisme (bijlage 1) lijkt veelbelovende resultaten op te leveren (Schweizer, 2020). Om een indruk van de resultaten van praktijkgericht onderzoek naar ‘Zelf in beeld’ te krijgen kunt u de korte animatie bekijken (3 min): https://youtu.be/cVAAzRHZnb0 In dit vervolgproject wordt verkend in hoeverre ‘Zelf in beeld’ van toegevoegde waarde van kan zijn voor kind, leerkracht en ouders, binnen de setting van Speciaal Onderwijs. Dit project heeft een innovatief karakter omdat er een nieuwe vorm van (preventief) werken binnen passend onderwijs wordt toegepast en onderzocht.
