2410 research outputs found
Sort by
Exploring the Development of Self-Concept Through Self-Portraits in Children with Significant Psychosocial and Emotional Needs
Get PDFAn individual’s self-concept is under significant development during childhood and adolescents. For children with significant psychosocial and emotional needs their environment, peer group, and accommodations can have a significant impact on the emotional development of their self-concept. Establishing a sense of belonging within relationships is a crucial part of the human experience. A negative self-concept can create barriers to children engaging positively with their peers, family, and community, which diminishes the opportunity for a felt sense of belonging. This capstone thesis is an attempt to develop an art therapy method informed by the expressive therapies continuum (ETC) to support the development of children with significant psychosocial and emotional needs within the context of a therapeutic day school setting as a holding environment. Through the use of portraiture via collagraphy printmaking, the level of congruence within childrens’ self-concepts will be analyzed through artistic reflection utilizing the same method of printmaking. “Portraits [are] the tangible subjectivity of the person’s portrayed remains, providing evidence of their worthiness and the sacredness of human life” (Carr, 2014, 66)
Nou Rive La ak 2 Pye Nou: Exploring Creative and Expressive Movements with Recently Arrived Haitian Migrants through a Community Engagement Project
Get PDFHaitian individuals and families constitute a large portion of the recently arrived migrants in Massachusetts. As the State struggles to respond to the logistics of the migration crisis, migrants are grappling with the mental health sequelae of their long and traumatic journeys: post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms are the top diagnoses among this population. Offering mental health services requires culturally-centered and trauma-informed methods that can respond to the needs of this population. Dance/movement therapy is an expressive modality that can be rooted in the rich cultural symbols and practices of the migrants to support them as they externalize and process their trauma on a non-verbal level. Through a creative movement session with Haitian migrants in the greater Boston area, this community engagement project explores the application of an adapted dance/movement therapy group structure, the five-part model, to fit the needs of this specific population. Despite the challenges to gather a group of migrants, the author was able to provide a supportive and relatively safe space where migrants explored movements that settled and mobilized their bodies and where they found relief and release in sharing some of their migration-related trauma. There is a high need for both research and application of dance/movement therapy with Haitian migrants, specifically, as this modality aligns with Haitians’ cosmology, resilience, and overall ways of knowing and being
Taking Off the Mask; Identity Development with Queer Emerging Adults
Get PDFThis literature review examines the potential of superhero-based drama therapy as a tool to foster feelings of agency, community building, and identity formation in queer emerging adults. Identity formation in this population is disrupted by internalized sexual stigma and isolation due to minority stressors specific to queer emerging adults. Identity formation is a crucial aspect of the developmental stage of emerging adulthood and is essential to mental wellness. By reviewing the history of queer readings of superhero media, the effective use of superhero-based therapeutic interventions, and the relevance of drama therapy processes in these interventions, it is concluded that drama therapy could be an appropriate approach for therapeutic work with queer emerging adults
Mindfulness, Music, & Art: Development of a Mindfulness Based Expressive Arts Therapy Method for Adults in a Short-Term Psychiatric Hospital Setting
Get PDFExisting literature shows that mindfulness is a modality that promotes human mental wellbeing, as is the use of creative forms of expression such as art and music. There is some emerging evidence that these two modalities are particularly useful when used in conjunction with one another. Utilizing such methods has been found to have notable results in the context of clinical mental health counseling. This kind of research, while promising, remains to be relatively new and there is a significant need for more data to be collected on this topic. To further explore the use of these modalities in clinical settings, I have designed an expressive arts therapy group for adults with severe mental health diagnoses such as anxiety and depression, titled “Mindfulness, Music & Art”. We use data collected throughout six separate expressive arts therapy groups throughout two different short-term units in a psychiatric hospital setting. The findings of this study reveal evidence to suggest that mindfulness and creativity is a helpful tool within the context of psychotherapy. This is in line with what research has suggested over the last several decades. These methods remain to be considered non-traditional; therefore, a major implication for this study is the idea that persistent exploration of this topic will be essential
Feldenkrais and Music Informed Listening: A Neurophenomenological Perspective on Autism
Get PDFPhenomenologists identify the subjective body and its felt-senses as the basis for human development and consciousness, including mental health. Several mental health disorders, when viewed from a phenomenological perspective, share common symptomology related to varying extents of fractured selves, which in turn hinders dynamic interaction between individuals, their actions, and their relationships with their social and material worlds. Autism is one such condition. Hence, I created an intervention to investigate how listening, which foster subjective and intersubjective experiences, lies at the heart of somatic and arts-based interventions. This thesis, first, begins with a summary of the presenting symptoms observed in autism and highlights gaps in current treatment approaches. Second, listening and music improvisation are introduced and related to subjective and intersubjective outcomes. Third, this thesis project introduces the Feldenkrais Method, which is a somatic learning-based pedagogy for the development of the self-image. A 12-year-old boy diagnosed as operating on the autism spectrum and his family in the context of In-Home Therapy are involved in a case study. Two treatments sessions were given over a period of 4 weeks: one session utilized Feldenkrais Method and the second session used music improvisation. A first-person subjective approach was used to capture the results. Favorable outcomes such as play and pleasure, a developing self-image and spontaneous emergences were observed within the sessions. As such, this approach can be considered a useful one for a more in-depth evaluation of listening practices
Climate Grief and Dance Movement Therapy: A Literature Review
Get PDFResearch is starting to focus on the effects of climate change on mental health, especially future-oriented anxieties and uncertainty about our planet’s liveability. Less commonly discussed are feelings of grief for the climate-related losses we have already sustained. This thesis organizes current literature about climate grief and data about the psychosomatic effects of climate-related losses and examines general grief counseling research, as well as presenting applications of dance movement therapy for grief and loss. Cultural and historical gestures and movements of grieving bodies and portrayals of grief in dance history support the proposal that dance movement therapists are capable of offering potent interventions for working with climate grief. This work suggests that acknowledging, embodying and sharing our climate grief through movement, ritual and other expressive arts highlights our collective creativity, sustains our hope and creates opportunities for healing and change
Zine-Making as an Expressive Arts Therapy Method in an Adult Psychiatric Inpatient Hospital
Get PDFZines are handmade versions of magazines with themes embracing art, music, politics, and social issues, offering individuals a platform to reclaim their narratives and connect with others. This paper explores zine-making as an expressive arts therapy method and its potential to foster individual and community expression within the inpatient psychiatric setting. The psychiatric care system is an often chaotic and even oppressive environment for the patients it serves, with a history of stigmatization that drives underfunding, understaffing, and an over-reliance on the biomedical model. By engaging in therapeutic zine-making, individuals in psychiatric care have the opportunity to explore their emotions, identities, and build community.
To further explore this subject, the author conducts a literature review on the inpatient psychiatric population and zine-making, then describes her method for a stand-alone group therapy session. She details the facilitation of 10 zine-making sessions over the course of 12 weeks within a large inpatient psychiatric hospital for adults in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.
Results demonstrate that zine-making seems to be an effective method for patients to express themselves and engage collaboratively, however, some patients may require one-to-one support to be successful in this method. In addition, three main themes surfaced over the course of patient sessions; chaos and flow, comfort, and doing. The author discusses the relevance of these themes as they relate to the reference literature and as they show up in her own zine, which she presents as an example of the medium and as a glimpse into the facilitator’s experience
Utilizing Dance Movement Therapy in the Treatment of Functional Neurological Symptom Disorder
Get PDFThere is a gap in the literature regarding treatment of pediatric Functional Neurological Symptom Disorder (FNSD) with Dance Movement Therapy (DMT). Functional neurological symptom disorder (FNSD) is a mental illness in which the affected individual experiences somatic symptoms in response to atypical nervous system activation. Dance movement therapy incorporates embodied experiences and physical movement in collaboration with emotional and psychological expression and processing. FNSD symptoms occur when the person’s symptoms are poorly integrated (Weiss et al., 2021) and is best treated through a variety of multidisciplinary treatments supporting all aspects of the client (Kim et al., 2022). Treatment often incorporates physical therapy and psychotherapy (Ali et al., 2015) as well as work with the child’s family and school personnel to limit attention to symptoms and expectations of functioning despite symptoms (Kozlowska et al., 2023). DMT prioritizes nonverbal communication, awareness of one’s body and internal sensations (Lauffenburger, 2020), and helps to facilitate mind-body integration (Shim et al., 2019). Following the review of literature, this thesis recommends specific DMT techniques to support FNSD treatment including body scans, mirroring, embodied imagery, and movement narrativization, and recommends areas for additional research
Molding the Self: Understanding Adoptees\u27 Identity Formation, A Literature Review
Get PDFThe topic under investigation focuses on the complex process of identity formation in adoptees, particularly those in transracial and international adoption scenarios. Grounding this topic in theory, the author draws from psychological and sociological perspectives. The literature illustrates key factors in adoptees\u27 identity formation, and it emphasizes the importance of family involvement and cultural connections in integrating identities, as well as the role of cultural ties in understanding racial identities. The conclusion from this study reveals the complexities and clinical considerations of adoptee identity formation, showing their challenges in combining birth and adoptive cultures. It underscores the value of art therapy in therapeutic practices for adoptees, contributing to a deeper comprehension of how adoption affects identity. The findings advocate for culturally sensitive therapeutic methods and enhanced social services and policies, promoting empathy for adoptees
Embodied Integration: How Expressive Arts Therapy Supports Self-Regulation in Adults with Complex PTSD (A Literature Review)
Get PDFComplex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder presents a unique challenge in healing due to the absence of a foundation of safety and self-regulation that results from repeated exposure to traumatic stress. This narrative literature review explores the current research on establishing this foundation as a crucial first step in complex PTSD treatment and examines how engaging in expressive arts therapy can foster self-regulation and create new, positive experiences for these clients. Drawing on clinical experience and neurobiological research, the author proposes a model conceptualizing self-regulation as an embodied, holistic process that results from left and right brain integration at multiple levels of internal neural communication and external perception and interaction. Examples from the literature demonstrate how expressive arts therapy can support this integration through sensory engagement, co-regulation, neural integration, and embodied resilience. The study highlights the potential of expressive arts therapy as a primary treatment modality for complex PTSD, offering significant benefits beyond its traditional role as an adjunctive therapy. The author concludes by calling for further research into the therapeutic value of community arts engagement for individuals with complex PTSD