Crafting Life Stories in Photocollage: An Online Creative Art-Based Intervention for Older Adults

Evaluation of an online arts-based platform to support the health and well-being of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional survey

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this study was to conduct a formative evaluation of the Art Your Service (AYS) arts-based program to determine the program's potential for improving the social and physical well-being of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic.

DESIGN, SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTS

An online questionnaire was administered to the AYS members who consented to be invited to participate in the study. Questionnaire items consisted of a Likert scale and open-ended questions delivered using an online platform (SurveyMonkey). Participants provided feedback on their perceptions and experiences of the AYS program, such as its impact on their health and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, the benefits and challenges of participating, and any suggestions for program improvement.

OUTCOME MEASURES AND ANALYSIS

Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequencies, means with standard deviations), and open-ended questions (qualitative data) were analyzed using content analysis. Outcomes included participant demographics, perceptions about the program, usability (System Usability Scale [SUS]), eHealth literacy (eHealth Literacy Scale), and social isolation (Lubben Social Network Scale; LSNS-6).

RESULTS

Program participants revealed consistent patterns of their perceptions and experiences about the program, including a high satisfaction rate (95%) and a perceived positive impact on participants' health and well-being. The program sessions were perceived to be a well-organized, convenient, and safe way to engage with one another socially during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program usability was also perceived to be high (SUS mean score 86.2). Participants felt a sense of connectedness and had reduced feelings of social isolation. Most participants (75%) reported that the program improved their physical health.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings from this formative evaluation study identified key strengths and opportunities to improve the Art Your Service arts-based program, which can be used to help enhance the program's functioning and long-term sustainability potential.

Productive art engagement in a hybrid format: effects on emotions of older adults during COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction

Previous studies have shown benefits of productive art-activity on frail older adults' mental and physical health. In this study, we investigated the effects of art-producing activities in a hybrid format (in-person and online) in a context of lockdown compared with previous studies taking place in museums and their effects on wellbeing, quality of life, physical frailty, and apathy in older adults.

Methods

We conducted a randomized unicentric control trial on a sample of 126 seniors older than 65 years (mean age 71.9 ± 2.3, 81% women) living in Nice (France). Participants were randomized in two parallel groups (intervention group with n = 62 vs. control group with n = 64) conducted during pandemic, between March and May 2021. The intervention group involved participatory art-based activities conducted in a hybrid format, either in-person or online, once a week for 2 h over a 12-week period. No specific intervention was proposed to the control group. The main aim was to evaluate how this hybrid format would impact the wellbeing, quality of life, and physical frailty of participants. The secondary aim was to compare our results with the previous studies conducted by Beauchet et al., and the third aim was to evaluate the impact of the intervention on apathy. Validated scales were implemented in RedCap and administered at baseline (M0) and at the end of the third month (M3).

Results

The intervention group showed significant improvement in their quality of life (p = 0.017) and their level of apathy (p = 0.016) after intervention. Emotional blunting increased significantly in the control group (p = 0.016) while it remained stable in the intervention group. No significant improvement was observed on the frailty, and wellbeing scores remained constant in both groups.

Conclusion

This randomized control trial confirmed emotional effects on seniors practicing an art-based activity in a hybrid format during pandemic on a weekly basis for 3 months.

Clinical Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT04570813.

Online gallery facilitated art activities for people with dementia during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond: A narrative review

Art activities for people with dementia have a range of therapeutic benefits including psychosocial wellbeing and enhanced quality of life. Successful art programs promote social engagement, are inclusive and empowering, and enable opportunity for people with dementia to express themselves verbally and non-verbally. The COVID-19 pandemic and associated social distancing precautions have impacted the capacity of art galleries and museums to deliver in-person programs. However, they have also provided a new opportunity. This paper explores the potential benefits, challenges, and future directions for research relating to the online delivery of gallery-facilitated art activities for people with dementia. The evidence revealed that increased digitisation of programs increased access for participants, however, the majority of the research was published before the pandemic. Nevertheless, COVID-19 has necessitated many museums and galleries to engage with people with dementia online. Future research is needed to improve the usability of online delivery platforms and a comparison of online and onsite delivery is recommended, particularly to evaluate benefits to people living in rural and remote areas where access to museums and galleries may be limited.

Tele-Drama Therapy with Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Field Training Project

OBJECTIVES

This paper explores a field training project of tele-drama therapy with community-dwelling older adults during COVID19. It merges three perspectives: the older participants' perspective, the students engaged in the field training, who conducted this remote therapy, and social workers.

METHODS

Interviews were conducted with 19 older adults. Focus groups were conducted with 10 drama therapy students and 4 social workers. The data were thematically analyzed.

RESULTS

Three themes emerged: the role of drama therapy methods in the therapeutic process, attitudes toward psychotherapy for older adults, and the phone as a therapeutic setting. These themes coalesced into a triangular model associating dramatherapy, tele-psychotherapy and psychotherapy with the older population. A number of obstacles were identified.

CONCLUSIONS

The field training project made a dual contribution to the older participants and the students. In addition, it promoted more positive attitudes among the students toward psychotherapy with the older population.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Tele-drama therapy methods appear to promote the therapeutic process with older adults. However, the phone session should be planned in advance in terms of time and place to ensure the participants' privacy. Field training of mental health students with older adults can promote more positive attitudes toward working with the older population.

New developments during the COVID-19 pandemic: Drama therapy as an online psychological intervention tool

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many art therapists and psychotherapists to change their practice modes and workplace setup. As a creative arts therapy (CAT), drama therapy has also shifted to an online mode—a shift that has been highly consequential for practice. This paper reviews the existing practice of tele-CAT and tele-drama therapy, explores the advantages and disadvantages of online drama therapy as a psychological intervention tool, and puts forward some developmental suggestions for online drama therapy.

Loss, Adaptation and Growth: The Experiences of Creative Arts Therapists during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, mental health professionals have been called upon to cope with various challenges, including the shift to telehealth without prior training, overload in the workplace, increased risk of infection, and personal stressors relating to the pandemic. This article presents the qualitative findings of a larger international mixed-method study that explored the experiences of creative arts therapists around the globe during the first year of the pandemic (Feniger-Schaal et al., 2022). Twenty creative arts therapists were interviewed between July 2020 and March 2021. Transcriptions of the interviews were qualitatively analyzed through reflexive thematic analysis. Three main themes were identified: an experience of processing the losses caused by the pandemic, a restorative orientation that focused on adaptations the therapists made, and innovations that lead to personal and professional growth. Artistic engagement and creativity were found to be a resource when coping with losses and helped therapists adapt to the shift to tele-creative arts therapies (tele-CAT). Although this shift can lead to advances in the field of creative arts therapies, it requires further consideration, including the need for ethical guidelines, specific training, the development of digital methods that support the creative process, and dedicated supervision for therapists. The findings also point to the importance of psychological support to mitigate the burden therapists experience during stressful events.

New Psychological Perspectives on Death and Dying-Between Normality and the COVID-19 Emergency

In recent decades, there has been a constantly increasing preoccupation with physical perfection and the scientific urge to improve life expectancy [...].

Dignity therapy for effective palliative care: a literature review

Dignity therapy for terminally ill patients in end-of-life care helps improve their psychological and spiritual well-being. In this study, the effectiveness and feasibility of dignity therapy in terminally ill patients were analyzed by reviewing previous studies. The review’s findings show that dignity therapy alleviates psychological distress and improves patients' spiritual well-being and dignity. In addition, many patients and their families found emotional support in generativity documents created through dignity therapy. Finally, the possibility of applying dignity therapy to palliative care in Korea in the future was explored. The findings indicate the influence of Eastern culture on recognizing death in patients who receive dignity therapy. Thus, dignity therapy shows promise as a contribution to improving palliative care; however, additional studies are needed to implement effective dignity therapy in the Korean context.

Spirituality During the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Online Creative Arts Intervention With Photocollages for Older Adults in Italy and Israel

The present study aimed to examine how expressions of spirituality were stimulated and reflected in an online creative arts intervention for older adults during COVID-19 lockdowns. The online process focused on the creation of digital photocollages together with narrative elements of dignity therapy. Twenty-four Israeli and Italian community-dwelling older adults aged 78–92 participated in a three-session online intervention involving the production of three photocollages. The visual and verbal data (participants’ chosen photos and photocollages, and transcripts of the sessions) were qualitatively analyzed within an abductive framework. Four themes were generated, representing the four domains of spirituality that were stimulated by and expressed in the process: (1) Connectedness with the self, (2) connectedness with others, (3) connectedness with the environment, and (4) connectedness with the transcendent. The findings show how photographs can serve as projective visual stimuli which elicit personal content through spontaneous thinking, and they reveal the multifaceted nature of spirituality, wherein each domain nourishes the others. Overall, the findings illustrate how creative arts intervention guided by the tenets of dignity therapy can contribute to the spiritual care of older adults during periods of social isolation, or to the spiritual support provided in palliative care.

“Migrated onto the Screen:” The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Clinical Practice of Drama Therapy

This article analyzes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the clinical practice of Drama Therapy, considering how a forced shift to the online setting impacted drama therapy’s concepts and practice. Anchored in a qualitative analysis of 20 interviews with well-established drama therapy practitioners from 19 different countries, we put forward the notion of four positions of reaction to the online setting: resistance, anxiety, adjustment and fluency. Our discussion of the four positions aims to reflect a composite exploration of practitioners’ experiences during various phases of their online work. Importantly, we insist that movement between positions is fluid and dynamic. Building on a prior research examining the use of digital resources before March 2020, our analysis utilizes the metaphor of forced migration to consider the range of experiences and challenges that emerged when online work was no longer a choice amidst the spread of the coronavirus. We hypothesize that practitioners who were able to channel the discipline’s creative ethos and recognize that online drama therapy presents a qualitatively different phenomenon (vis-a-vis in-person practice) were best able to experience the fluency position. We speculate that “online drama therapy” may be different from “practicing drama therapy online,” wondering whether it will develop into a new brand of drama therapy, as more and more practitioners and clients “migrate onto the screen”.

‘You’re Not Alone for China’: The First Song in Times of COVID-19 to Keep the Faith in a World Crying in Silence

Collective mourning is an expression of societal maturity, cohesion, and respect. The world is in grief, but in early January 2020, before nobody could even imagine that SARS-CoV-2 would turn into the COVID-19 pandemic, a music video version of a pop ballad about love and isolation was spread across a Chinese social network. The song ‘You Are Not Alone’ was adapted as a cover by young foreigners living in China to express their support to bereaved families and frontline workers and encourage the people of China, their second home. At that time, the rest of the world looked to distant China but could hardly expect to face the same adversity months later. The authors reported that the music video was a spontaneous artistic expression copying such traumatic events and the mourning process. The present work analyses how the music was blended with lyrics and images describing the outbreak in Wuhan to reach their goal. The original song and this shortened version for China were compared regarding musical and lyric structures and main characteristics. Additionally, an analysis of the two videos was done regarding cinemetric variables and non-verbal communication that emphasized the power of songs to express deep sorrow and sympathy but also to give hope. Psychological first aid, the five stages of the mourning process by Kübler-Ross, the dual-process model by Stroebe and Schut, and Taylor’s tend-to-befriend provided a better understanding of the translation from interpersonal to societal mourning. Finally, other memorable songs that society spontaneously chose to be performed alone or together to cope with sudden and dramatic situations, mitigate physical distancing, and alleviate human suffering are discussed. Music, lyrics, and artistic performance are playing a key role in building social and emotional ties during this pandemic, hampering individual and social pain and sorrow despite cultural barriers.

Spirituality during COVID-19 in Northern Italy: The experience of participating in an online prayer group

Spirituality has ascendant value during times of adversity. Religious activities have beenfound to increase spirituality, and therefore might be considered a coping resource for the individual. The present research aims to explore participants' experience in an online Catholic prayer group in northern Italy that was held throughout the period of COVID-19 social restrictions. The group comprised 16 Catholic individuals aged 34 to 85, who were interviewed in writing following a protocol of four open-ended questions. The results reported four main thematic areas: (1) the benefits of the spiritual journey while coping with the pandemic; (2) the potential of the online setting; (3) the challenges of the online setting; and (4) the bond with God and how it evolved during the pandemic. The findings confirm the valuable contribution of the on-line group religious activity to the participants'    wellbeing, particularly during the time of social distancing.