A 10 week supportive arts program was conducted in Jinja, Uganda via the collaboration between a local nongovernmental organization, a Ugandan artist, and two art therapists from the United States. The artist facilitated weekly artmaking sessions for former unhoused youth being served by the organization, as well as engaged in weekly virtual…

This article discusses the clinical benefit of comparing and integrating responses to 2 drawing tasks based on a small study that explored self-agency representations in children with disruptive behavior problems. Qualitative analysis of the children's free drawing and a Person Picking an Apple from a Tree (PPAT) task, as well as comparison of…

Given the tragedy of war and genocide, words often cannot adequately capture the complexity of war-related experiences. Researchers are increasingly utilizing the arts to enable multiple forms of expression, as well as for its therapeutic and empowering qualities. This paper outlines the use of the "river of life," an arts-based…

This naturalistic multiple-case study design (N = 6) examined the clinical use of a modified Draw A Story assessment as a therapeutic tool for a hospice art therapy program. The aim was to recontextualize a standardized art-based assessment for use as a creative art-based tool. Client participants were video recorded while creating a Draw A Story…

Artbooks, which are a combined form of picture and story book created using mixed media, can be a simple yet powerful way of supporting children affected by war and displacement to tell their stories. They allow children to work through the creative arts, which protects them from being overwhelmed by difficult memories. They also allow, even very…

This randomized controlled clinical trial explored the feasibility of implementing a fast-acting mandala intervention to reduce physical pain and psychological anxiety experienced during needle sticks. Forty pediatric patients participated in this two-group study: 20 participants created a mandala on an iPad (Treatment Group) and 20 participants…

We evaluated changes in positive and negative affect of grieving children in response to art making compared to another noncreative, non-expressive, but engaging visuospatial task and assessed whether art making was equally or differentially effective in individual versus collaborative settings. We randomly assigned grieving children to one of…

This brief report describes a preliminary study that examined the association between implicit aspects of parent-child relationships as assessed by the Joint Painting Procedure (JPP) and self-report measures of the quality of mother-child relations and children's adjustment at home and at school as reported by the mothers. Forty mother-child dyads…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a behavioral art program in improving social skills for two children with autism in group settings. A multiple probe design across behaviors was used. The results indicated that for both children, the program increased the percentages of spontaneous verbal communications,…

The author evaluated a private school's art program in 2009-2010 that used Daily Life Therapy (DLT) for students diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Significant increases in numbers of persons diagnosed with ASD have been noted in the last two decades. Several methodologies claim success in programming for children with ASD, but lack…

This article illustrates an art activity for use in psychotherapy with children or adolescents. The purpose of the activity is to utilize creativity to increase problem solving for child clients and to allow their narratives to expand therapeutically. The processing of the activity allows the art to be transformed into language, thereby involving…

This article reviews the history of dollmaking that is relevant to art therapy, and the application of dolls as therapeutic media in clinical and educational settings. The authors describe their experiences using dollmaking in the resolution of grief, in professional identity construction, and in community service. The article addresses the…

As a Chaplain working in the Anglican school system in Melbourne, Australia, my concern is with the spiritual development of students. This year I have been trialing the educational application of activities used in creative arts therapy. Continuing the theme of my recent doctoral studies in children's spirituality, I am concerned that education…

Of general interest in this study comparing two cottage-home art therapy groups was the question of whether or not a token reward system would increase children's cooperative behaviors and art production. Participants in the study were residents at a treatment facility for abused children. Cottages differed in the responsiveness of residents to…

This paper presents therapeutic art practices carried out with 60 orphan children in the small town of Ugarchin in northern Bulgaria. In 1999, a group of artists and teachers developed a varied program of art activities for these children. These activities included two 1-week visits and the opening of five art workshops--Art History, Ceramics,…