Commentary: Examining underlying paradigms in the creative arts therapies of trauma

Art therapy as a comprehensive complementary treatment for Parkinson's disease

Introduction

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disease. Complementary and alternative therapies are increasingly utilized to address its complex multisystem symptomatology. Art therapy involves motoric action and visuospatial processing while promoting broad biopsychosocial wellness. The process involves hedonic absorption, which provides an escape from otherwise persistent and cumulative PD symptoms, refreshing internal resources. It involves the expression in nonverbal form of multilayered psychological and somatic phenomena; once these are externalized in a symbolic arts medium, they can be explored, understood, integrated, and reorganized through verbal dialogue, effecting relief and positive change.

Methods

42 participants with mild to moderate PD were treated with 20 sessions of group art therapy. They were assessed before and after therapy with a novel arts-based instrument developed to match the treatment modality for maximum sensitivity. The House-Tree-Person PD Scale (HTP-PDS) assesses motoric and visuospatial processing-core PD symptoms-as well as cognition (thought and logic), affect/mood, motivation, self (including body-image, self-image, and self- efficacy), interpersonal functioning, creativity, and overall level of functioning. It was hypothesized that art therapy will ameliorate core PD symptoms and that this will correlate with improvements in all other variables.

Results

HTP-PDS scores across all symptoms and variables improved significantly, though causality among variables was indeterminate.

Discussion

Art therapy is a clinically efficacious complementary treatment for PD. Further research is warranted to disentangle causal pathways among the aforementioned variables, and additionally, to isolate and examine the multiple, discrete healing mechanisms believed to operate simultaneously in art therapy.

The applicability of a seminal professional development theory to creative arts therapies students

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to test the extent to which a seminal theory of the professional development of counsellors and therapists is applicable to the particular experiences of creative arts therapies graduate students who learn how to use the arts in psychotherapy. Nevertheless, readers may consider the results of the present study transferable to other healthcare disciplines. Questionnaires for each developmental phase were used for data collection, and analysis included data quantification, assessment of inter-rater agreement and theory derivation procedure. Results indicate that creative arts therapies students were concerned about translating theory into practice, learning how experienced therapists concretely function in practice, and reducing cognitive dissonance upon realization that their pre-training lay conceptions of helping were no longer valid. Stress and anxiety drove students to adopt easily mastered techniques that were implemented creatively in practicum. The results confirm that students who were older and had undergraduate human-service education and/or considerable life experience were less concerned about their suitability to the profession, were more acquainted with a professional working style and searched for their individual way of becoming therapists. Finally, recommendations for future research are suggested, and implications for practice are offered.

Group music therapy for patients with persistent post-traumatic stress disorder--an exploratory randomized controlled trial with mixed methods evaluation

OBJECTIVES

Not all patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) respond to cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). Literature suggests group music therapy might be beneficial in treating PTSD. However, feasibility and effectiveness have not been assessed. The study objectives were to assess whether group music therapy was feasible for patients who did not respond to CBT, and whether it has an effect on PTSD symptoms and depression.

DESIGN

The study employed mixed methods comprising of an exploratory randomized controlled trial, qualitative content analysis of therapy, and patient interviews.

METHOD

Patients with significant PTSD symptoms (n = 17) following completion of CBT were randomly assigned to treatment (n = 9) or control groups (n = 8). The treatment group received 10 weeks of group music therapy after which exit interviews were conducted. Control group patients were offered the intervention at the end of the study. Symptoms were assessed on the Impact of Events Scale-Revised and Beck Depression Inventory II at the beginning and end of treatment.

RESULTS

Treatment-group patients experienced a significant reduction in severity of PTSD symptoms (-20.18; 95% confidence interval [CI]: [-31.23, -9.12]) and a marginally significant reduction in depression (-11.92; 95%CI: [-24.05, 0.21]) at 10 weeks from baseline compared to the control. Patients viewed music therapy as helpful and reported experiences concur with current literature.

CONCLUSIONS

Group music therapy appears feasible and effective for PTSD patients who have not sufficiently responded to CBT. Limitations include the small sample size and lack of blinding. Further research should address these limitations, test sustainability, and identify specific factors that address symptoms in treatment.