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Research watch: art therapy: a dose of treatment, an aid to social inclusion or an unnecessary indulgence?
- Author:
- HOLTTUM Sue
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 17(2), 2013, pp.64-69.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose – This Research Watch aims to summarise two recent and very different research publications on art therapy and comments on their ability to shed light on the usefulness of art therapy to address mental distress and enhance social inclusion. Design/methodology/approach – The author discusses a recent edition of a UK art therapy journal in which research papers focus on art therapy with people who have been given a diagnosis of personality disorder. The main methodologies are qualitative describing participants’ and/or therapists’ experiences and the role of art therapy in addressing serious mental distress. The second publication is a recent report of a large randomised controlled trial of art therapy for people given a diagnosis of schizophrenia. The author assesses the value of both publications in informing us about the usefulness of art therapy in addressing mental distress and enhancing social inclusion. Findings – In the author's view, neither publication establishes definitively how or whether art therapy might address serious mental distress, whether labelled personality disorder or schizophrenia. However, the qualitative articles provide insight into possible helpful (and less helpful) aspects of therapy. The randomised trial should have been able to establish general principles about the effectiveness of art therapy for a specific group of people in specified contexts, but instead exemplifies many problems inherent in the pervasive research culture of putting numbers onto complex human interactions and calculating their value for money, sometimes at the expense of really understanding what is going on. Originality/value – The author draws upon these two very different examples of research to reflect a current dilemma in UK art therapy research, and tentatively looks at possible ways forward. (Publisher abstract)
Mental health recovery is social
- Author:
- HOLTTUM Sue
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 18(3), 2014, pp.110-115.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to summarise two 2014 research papers that highlight the role of social interactions and the social world in recovery in the context of mental distress. Design/methodology/approach: The author summarise two papers: one is about two theories from social psychology that help us understand social identity – our sense of who we are. The other brings together and looks at the similarities and differences between ten different therapies that can be called resource-oriented – that is, they focus on people's strengths and resources rather than what is wrong with them. Findings: The paper on social identity gives a convincing case for incorporating teaching about social identity – and the social groups to which people belong – into the training of mental health professionals. The paper on resource-oriented therapies suggests that social relationships are a main component of all ten therapies examined. This second paper suggested a need for more research and theory relating to resource-oriented therapies. Social identity theory could help address this issue. Mental health services may be able to help people more by focusing on their established and desired social identities and group-belonging, and their strengths, than is usual. Originality/value: These two papers seem timely given the growing recognition of the role of social factors in the development and maintenance of mental distress. More attention to social factors in recovery could help make it more self-sustaining. (Publisher abstract)