Literature review of art therapy-based interventions for work-related stress

'You come as a human being…': exploring sense of equality in arts interventions through an ethnographic study of Shared Reading

Research shows that the arts hold a particular potential for promoting health, well-being and social inclusion for vulnerable people. However, the use and consumption of the arts tend to be socially skewed in favour of people with high cultural, social and economic capital. While extensive research has been conducted on how to create equal access to arts activities for vulnerable groups, little research has investigated how to ensure meaningful engagement with the arts by this group. Shared Reading (SR) has had considerable success in engaging vulnerable groups in collective literary practices, and research suggests that this may partly be due to the unique forms of social and literary engagement that the concept fosters. These forms of engagement, we suggest, lay the foundation for a sense of equality among participants that may promote social connectedness and well-being. On this basis, the present study aims to investigate whether and how a sense of equality may play a role in SR practices. The study found that SR promotes a sense of equality by creating a space where social interaction and relatedness does not hinge on social roles, but rather on lived experiences-and vulnerabilities inherent to these-conveyed through literary texts and shared among participants. However, to promote a sense of equality in SR, meaningful engagement for all participants must be ensured, making facilitation an essential element of SR practices and an important focus in arts interventions in general. We conclude that SR, and arts interventions more generally, may be a promising way to promote a sense of equality, but further research is needed on the specific qualities of and potential contexts for the promotion of a sense of equality.

Videoconference-based Creativity Workshops for mental health staff during the COVID-19 pandemic

BACKGROUND

COVID-19 presented significant challenges to psychiatric staff, while social distancing and remote working necessitated digital communications. NHS England prioritised staff wellbeing. Arts-based creativity interventions appear to improve psychological wellbeing, so this study evaluated online Creativity Workshops as a staff support response for COVID-19-related stress.

METHODS

Participants were staff from a South London NHS psychiatric hospital. Group Creativity Workshops were facilitated via Microsoft Teams. Acceptability data on pre- and post-workshop mood and attitudes were self-reported by participants. Feasibility data were gathered from adherence to number of workshop components delivered.

RESULTS

Eight workshops were delivered in May-September 2020 (N = 55) with high adherence to components. Participants reported significantly increased positive mood and attitudes towards themselves and others; and decreased stress and anxiety.

CONCLUSIONS

Online Creativity Workshops appear feasible and acceptable in reducing stress in psychiatric staff. Integrating a programme of Creativity Workshops within healthcare staff support may benefit staff wellbeing.

Effects of a group poetry therapy program on stress, anxiety, ego-resilience, and psychological well-being of nursing students

This quasi-experimental, nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest study developed a 10-session group poetry therapy program for nursing students and examined effects on clinical training, job-seeking stress, anxiety, ego-resilience, and psychological well-being. Forty-nine nursing students were conveniently recruited (experimental group n = 24, control group n = 25). Program construction used the Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation model and Mazza's poetry therapy practice model. Compared to the control group, the experimental group showed significant decreases in stress and anxiety and significant improvements in ego-resilience and psychological well-being immediately after intervention, maintained at 5-week follow-up. The program can be a beneficial intervention for individuals experiencing various degrees of stress.

Memes and Poetry: A Descriptive Analysis on Creative Arts Therapy to Reduce Health Care Worker Burnout

BACKGROUND

Health care workers (HCWs) face high levels of burnout, which can lead to workforce turnover and poor patient outcomes. Health care leaders should identify strategies to improve staff resilience.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to describe HCWs' perspective on using creative arts therapy to reduce burnout and improve resiliency.

METHODS

During Infection Prevention week, staff were encouraged to submit and vote on educational memes and haikus. Staff were asked their perspectives on how this activity could be used to reduce burnout and improve resiliency using a 4-point Likert scale.

RESULTS

Twenty-two staff members submitted 26 memes and 27 haikus. Staff felt this activity could be an effective strategy to help reduce burnout and improve resiliency.

CONCLUSIONS

Further research is warranted to better understand the correlation between this form of art therapy and burnout and resiliency; however, health care leaders may consider using this as a tool for staff well-being.

The arts and the social determinants of health: findings from an inquiry conducted by the United Kingdom All-Party Parliamentary Group on Arts, Health and Wellbeing

Background: The United Kingdom All-Party Parliamentary Group on Arts, Health and Wellbeing was formed in 2014 and, the following year, initiated an Inquiry into the relationship between arts engagement, health and wellbeing. This led to a substantial report being launched in Parliament in July 2017.Methods: The Inquiry comprised 16 round-table discussions, a series of expert meetings and a lengthy period of desk-based research. The latter applied a realist method in seeking to reconcile policy, practice and evidence. Consideration of the social determinants of health formed the theoretical framework.Results: Evidence was found of a beneficial relationship between arts engagement, health and wellbeing across the life course.Conclusions: Arts engagement can mitigate the social determinants of health by influencing perinatal mental health and child cognitive development; shaping educational and employment opportunities and compensating for work-related stress; building individual resilience and enhancing communities. Further research is needed in this area.

Effectiveness of Art Therapy With Adult Clients in 2018-What Progress Has Been Made?

In the year 2000, an important art therapy literature review addressed an essential question-does art therapy work? It discussed 17 articles dealing with the issue of the effectiveness of art therapy. Two decades later, this research field has extended its scope and is flourishing. Several current reviews of research work have described the broad range of methods implemented today, which includes qualitative and quantitative studies; other reviews have focused on art therapy with specific populations, or by age group. The aim of this systematic literature review is to contribute to the ongoing discussion in the field by exploring the latest studies dealing with the effectiveness of art therapy with a broad scope of adult clients. We conducted a comprehensive search in four databases and review of every quantitative article that has addressed outcome measures in the art therapy field from 2000 to 2017. This paper presents the latest 27 studies in the field that examine the effectiveness of art therapy with adult clients and divides them into seven clinical categories: cancer patients, clients coping with a variety of medical conditions, mental health clients, clients coping with trauma, prison inmates, the elderly, and clients who have not been diagnosed with specific issues but face ongoing daily challenges. It underscores the potential effects of art therapy on these seven clinical populations, and recommends the necessary expansions for future research in the field, to enable art therapy research to take further strides forward.