No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.
The role of arts activities in developing resilience and mental wellbeing in children and young people a rapid review of the literature
Abstract
Aims:
This rapid review explores the role of arts activities in promoting the mental wellbeing and resilience of children and young people aged between 11 and 18 years.
Methods:
A systematic search of the literature was undertaken across 18 databases; no date limit was set on publication. Search terms included a range of creative activities: music, dance, singing, drama and visual arts; these were combined with terms linked to aspects of mental health, emotional wellbeing and resilience. Only studies related to activities that took place within community settings and those related to extracurricular activities based within schools were included.
Results:
Following the application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, eight papers were included in the review. The interventions used in the studies were diverse and the research was heterogeneous; therefore, narrative synthesis of the results was conducted. The findings from the studies are considered in terms of the contribution the activities make to building resilience of children and young people. It was found that participating in arts activities can have a positive effect on self-confidence, self-esteem, relationship building and a sense of belonging, qualities which have been associated with resilience and mental wellbeing.
Conclusions:
Although the research evidence is limited, there is some support for providing structured group arts activities to help build resilience and contribute to positive mental wellbeing of children and young people.
... These programs typically center around athletics, artistic and academic areas, tend to be structured and led by adults, and are typically designed and delivered for youth of similar ages at regular, pre-scheduled times (Friedman, 2013). Several studies have examined outcomes derived from participation in a wide range of extracurricular program offerings (e.g., Howie et al., 2010;Metsäpelto and Pulkkinen, 2014;Ilari et al., 2016;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017;Molinuevo et al, 2010). A closer examination of these works suggests that outcomes are associated with demographics, individual/person factors (e.g., motivations and dispositions, interests), peer relations, family influence, and community characteristics and affordances. ...
... A solid body of evidence exists to support the association between prolonged participation in extracurricular activities and positive developmental outcomes (e.g., Catalano et al., 2002;Mueller et al., 2011). Aside from developing specialized skills in areas like music, dance, sports and academics, sustained participation in extracurricular programs may enhance cognitive, motor and socioemotional skills in children and youth (Mahoney et al., 2005;Fredricks and Eccles, 2006;Metsäpelto and Pulkkinen, 2014;Hedemann and Frazier, 2017;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017;Ilari et al., 2019). This includes the reduction of boredom and antisocial behaviors, and an increase in self-control, self-esteem and empathy in young people (Bone et al., 2021). ...
... Participation in extracurricular programs has also been associated with educational attainment and college admission, civil engagement in adulthood, and social mobility of youth from underserved communities (Snellman et al., 2015). These outcomes have been partly explained in terms of the characteristics and affordances of specific programs, which may allow youth to develop initiative and leadership skills, grit, socioemotional skills, agency and a sense of belonging (Mueller et al., 2011;Snellman et al., 2015;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017). ...
Introduction:
Music is central in the lives of adolescents. While listening is usually the most common form of engagement, many adolescents also learn music formally by participating in school-based and extracurricular programs. This study examined positive youth development (PYD), school connectedness (SC), and hopeful future expectations (HFE) in middle school students (N = 120) with four levels of musical participation in school-based and extracurricular music programs. Levels of participation were based on students' engagement in different music programs, including the Virtual Middle School Music Enrichment (VMSME), a tuition-free, extracurricular program that focuses on popular music education and virtual learning. We also investigated student listening preferences, musical tuition, and daily instrumental practicing.
Method:
Study participants completed an anonymous, online survey that contained five self-report measures including the very-brief form of the PYD questionnaire, a scale of school connectedness, and a scale of HFE.
Results:
Findings revealed significant differences in PYD scores by grade and gender, and associations between levels of musical participation and competence, a PYD component. Liking music and participation in extracurricular activities predicted scores on SC, and starting formal music education before age 8 predicted scores in HFE. We also found VMSME students to stem from neighborhoods with lower HDI than students in the other study groups, which points to issues of access to formal music education.
Discussion:
Findings are discussed in light of earlier research on PYD, extracurricular activities in adolescence, the ubiquity and functions of music in adolescence, and deficit thinking in education.
... Some resources are intrinsic to the individual, whilst others are considered external [19]. The external resources relate to social and cultural aspects in the environment, like family, interpersonal relationships or participation in activities, such as the arts [20,21]. Some evidence suggests an association between specific protective factors, such as family attachment, social skills, strong moral beliefs, positive personal disposition, among others, and the reduction of mental health problems [22]. ...
... Various reports and reviews in the medical literature have mentioned the benefits of artistic activities for the mental health of individuals and community well-being [23]. In young people, engaging in these types of activities has been associated with positive outcomes such as the development of social skills and positive behavioral changes [21]. Participation in arts activities has also been suggested to increase self-esteem, feelings of achievement, empowerment, and social skills and to promote socializing with others [21]; all of these characteristics can be seen as related to the concept of resilience [21]. ...
... In young people, engaging in these types of activities has been associated with positive outcomes such as the development of social skills and positive behavioral changes [21]. Participation in arts activities has also been suggested to increase self-esteem, feelings of achievement, empowerment, and social skills and to promote socializing with others [21]; all of these characteristics can be seen as related to the concept of resilience [21]. However, the existing studies and the available evidence in this area are inconsistent and have mainly originated from European countries, meaning that the evidence for the mental health benefits of arts activities of young people participating in arts organizations within a Latin American context, specifically Colombia, is limited. ...
Background
Adolescents and young adults are vulnerable to developing mental distress. However, evidence suggests that more than half of the young people with symptoms of depression and anxiety overcome their distress within a year. However, there is little research on the exact resources that young people use and help them to recover. The aim of this study was to explore how arts activities can support the recovery of young people engaged with arts organizations in Bogota.
Methods
We recruited 38 participants from two arts organizations in Bogotá and conducted six focus groups embedded within artistic workshops. The type of activities in the workshops varied reflecting the different teaching methods of the two organizations. The focus group discussions were recorded and analyzed using thematic analysis.
Results
Five themes explained how arts activities can help young people participating in artistic organizations to overcome mental distress: i) allowing the expression of emotions; ii) helping to manage and transform emotions; iii) distracting from problems; iv) facilitating social support and relationships; and v) contributing to the identity of young people.
Conclusions
For young people who participate in artistic organizations, the arts are a resource for overcoming negative emotions such as anxiety, depression, and sadness. The beneficial role of arts activities includes different process of managing, expressing, and distracting from distress, and it differs depending on whether arts are perceived as a professional vocation or a hobby.
... There are resources that have been described as intrinsic to the individual, whilst others are considered external (16). The external resources relate to social and cultural aspects that exist in the environment that surrounds people, like, for example, family, interpersonal relationships or participation in activities, such as the arts (18,19). ...
... Some studies have concluded that participating in artistic activities, including clinical arts therapy and non-clinical artistic activities, may provide bene ts for mental health and improve wellness in individuals (20). In young people, engaging in these types of activities has been associated with positive outcomes such as the development of social skills and positive behavioral changes (19). This participation has also been associated with increased self-esteem, feelings of achievement, empowerment, social skills and promoting socializing with others (19); all of these characteristics are related to the concept of resilience (19). ...
... In young people, engaging in these types of activities has been associated with positive outcomes such as the development of social skills and positive behavioral changes (19). This participation has also been associated with increased self-esteem, feelings of achievement, empowerment, social skills and promoting socializing with others (19); all of these characteristics are related to the concept of resilience (19). However, the existing studies and the available evidence in this area, has mainly originated from European countries, meaning that the evidence of the arts and its relation to mental health in young people within a Latin American context, speci cally Colombia, is limited. ...
Background: Young adults and adolescents are in stage where their mental health is more vulnerable. In Latin América, there are factors that predispose young people towards an increased risk of suffering from mental illness. However more than half of the young people who manifest symptoms of depression and anxiety are able to overcome these episodes approximately one year after the onset of symptoms. This is related to the concept of resilience.
Methods: The main objective of the study was to characterize the role of the arts in relation to mental health in young people involved in artistic organizations in Bogota. Six artistic workshops and focus groups were conducted, with 38 participants from two arts organizations in Bogota. The type of artistic workshop varied depending on the type of art taught in each institution. The focus group discussions were recorded, transcribed, coded and analyzed using an inductive analysis methodology.
Results: There were five themes that emerged in explaining the role of the arts in relation to the mental health of young people. These themes included i) the management and expression of emotions, ii) the transformation of emotions, iii) the distracting quality of the arts, iv) the arts as a social facilitator and v) the arts as part of the identity and lifestyle of young people.
Conclusions: For young people who participate in artistic activities, the arts are a tool for managing emotions perceived as negative, such as stress, anxiety, depression and sadness. Their perception of the arts as a tool for mental health was viewed differently depending on whether it is perceived as a professional vocation versus a hobby. These findings are relevant within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, taking into account that the participants were exposed to various mental health risk factors, such as an extended obligatory quarantine and social distancing.
... There is no shortage of individual initiative evaluations. As the evidence base grows, there are now academic and lay synthesis publications detailing various forms of reviews (APPGAHW 2017; Bungay and Vella-Burrows 2013;Daykin et al. 2008;Zarobe and Bungay 2017). This work, however, has been hampered by complexities of practice and by contention regarding what constitutes the best or most valid forms of evidence (Clift 2012;Putland 2008;Raw et al. 2012). ...
... CA programs have reported life course effects from childhood through to end of life (APPGAHW 2017). In youth, CA programs have been found to promote intrinsic resilience in the form of a sense of belonging, identify formation, confidence, and self-esteem (Zarobe and Bungay 2017), and to have positive effects on social skills, awareness raising, and behavior change in relation to health issues such as HIV/AIDS and drug use (Daykin et al. 2008). In older adults, participation in CA has produced evidence of improvements in physical well-being and morale, as well as reductions in loneliness, doctor visits, falls, and medication use (Cohen 2009). ...
... Arts therapy and clinical initiatives have been successfully measured using "gold standards" of evidence-based medicine, such as randomized controlled trials and meta-analyses, but this approach has been more challenging for CA initiatives, which often consist of small sample sizes with no obvious control group (APPGAHW 2017). Though there is some agreement regarding "encouraging" findings, systematized reviews of the CA evidence base consistently report issues with methodological rigor, citing concerns such as lack of validated outcome measures, issues with response rates and attrition, and lack of statistical power (Bungay and Vella-Burrows 2013;Clift 2012;Merli 2002;Zarobe and Bungay 2017). Consequently, there is an overall appraisal of the evidence as lacking robustness and multiple calls for higherquality studies, which Hamilton et al. (2003) characterize as "still searching for the holy grail." ...
Art-making and creative expression are powerful tools for personal and social learning, growth, and transformation. This rationale is at the essence of the practice of community arts (CA). CA have been defined as artistic activity based in a community setting and characterized by dialogue and co-creation with the community. CA initiatives are increasingly being understood as “whole person” approaches for improving health at individual and community levels, drawing on holistic conceptualizations of health that are not just physical or disease-specific, but rather emphasize broader concepts of mental and social well-being. CA programs cite goals ranging from improving the social and emotional well-being of participants to promoting civic dialogue and community building. A growing body of literature seeks to substantiate the health-promoting impacts of arts initiatives. This work, however, has been hampered by complexities of practice and by contention regarding what constitutes the best or most valid forms of evidence. This chapter explores the discourse on the health-promoting impacts of CA, seeking to map current knowledge and debate in relation to CA and impacts on social determinants of health, in the English language literature.
... The contemporary curatorial practice offers a few methods for elevating the quality of well-being through community engagement. Wang et al., (2020) explained that community-engaged art extends over cultural aspects across the world and is supported by previous studies that suggested community-engaged art does bring positive effects and is beneficial for the mental health and well-being of the participants (Gold et al., 2004;Fujiwara et al., 2014;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017;Curtis et al., 2018;Fancourt & Finn, 2019). However, Wang et al. (2020) also question the mental health and well-being benefits of communityengaged art whether it is influenced by the arts engagement itself or the socio-economic status of the participants. ...
... This co-creation research project has proved that taking part in creative activities can elevate the quality of well-being. Hence, the research findings have further strengthened the previous studies such as Gold et al. (2004), Fujiwara et al. (2014), Zarobe & Bungay (2017), Curtis et al. (2018), Fancourt & Finn (2019) are committed to scientifically prove that creative arts activities possess the role in promoting mental health and capable of elevating the quality of well-being while implementing some elements in co-creation method. Although essentially this study only emphasizes the social participation component, it still proves that there is an increase in the level of well-being among the participants after taking part in the art project. ...
Una revisión preliminar de estudios anteriores ha evidenciado que el método utilizado para involucrar a la comunidad en las artes suele estar muy mal articulado. Además, las evaluaciones y reflexiones formales sobre los proyectos de participación artística comunitaria son muy escasas. Por lo tanto, este estudio pretende explorar el método de cocreación del arte comprometido con la comunidad con comunidades seleccionadas en Kampung Muhibbah, Kuching, Sarawak, Malasia. El objetivo del debate es destacar cómo la cocreación puede ofrecer un enfoque participativo que contribuya a elevar la calidad de vida tanto para los profesionales del arte como para los que no lo son. La investigación se llevó a cabo con un método mixto que utilizó un proyecto de cocreación como estudio de caso para la recopilación de datos, mediante entrevistas y observaciones de los participantes en un método cualitativo y una puntuación de evaluación del bienestar en un método cuantitativo. Los resultados mostraron que el proyecto de cocreación podía establecer buenas interacciones dentro de la comunidad a través de actividades artísticas y posteriormente elevar su calidad de bienestar. Una comprensión más profunda del método de cocreación con la participación de la comunidad puede poner en tela de juicio la práctica artística participativa convencional. La exploración del método de cocreación a través del arte como medio ha contribuido ampliamente al conocimiento de la práctica de la cocreación en el compromiso de la comunidad para elevar el bienestar.
... Through observation and conversation with the student in the present study, we concluded that the problem with creating a piece of art often lies with the conceptual solutions within the visual motif, rather than the student's sense of incompetence. With each visual art activity, the student revealed and learned something new about himself (Zarobe and Bungay, 2017). He proved himself, especially in situations when the subject was a challenge or a motivation for him to figure out. ...
... We found that the student gradually adopted visual art concepts and presented them verbally as part of the evaluation of different artwork, which allowed emotions and experiences to be recorded, and the interpretation of these enhanced the student's verbal communication abilities. Visual art expression thus revealed important information and new ways of getting to know the student (Kariž, 2008;Öztürk, 2009;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017). ...
Primary school teachers in Slovenia are regularly confronted with a large number of students with special needs who show deficits in perseverance, attention, and concentration. Therefore, considerable professional support is required to provide an inclusive approach to visual art-based activities, including art-based interventions. In this study, a 12-step qualitative action research programme was conducted over a 3-month period in order to help with the integration of a 10-year-old boy who had deficits in individual learning areas, such as perseverance, attention, and concentration. Our results show that art-based interventions using different visual art areas, techniques, materials, expressive methods, and concepts in art classes had a positive effect on the student’s perseverance, attention, and concentration abilities. During the study period, his concentration and perseverance levels improved. He also accepted the fact that effort and perseverance are essential to complete a work of art, leading to better quality art and personal satisfaction.
... The effectiveness of arts-based intervention for young people exposed to adverse experiences in childhood Creative arts such as music, dance, drama and visual arts, and artsbased therapies are emerging as important approaches in the treatment of childhood trauma. Arts based research and interventions permit gradual exploration of adverse experiences, where the creator exercises control over disclosure, and non-verbal disclosure or awareness grows, leading to narration at deeper levels so offering an ethical and safer process that is less likely to lead to distress or trigger traumatic symptoms [33][34][35] . Evidence suggests that arts-based interventions improve sense of achievement, self-confidence, self-esteem, social skills, conflict resolution, problem solving, relationships and sense of belonging amongst adolescents 35 . ...
... Arts based research and interventions permit gradual exploration of adverse experiences, where the creator exercises control over disclosure, and non-verbal disclosure or awareness grows, leading to narration at deeper levels so offering an ethical and safer process that is less likely to lead to distress or trigger traumatic symptoms [33][34][35] . Evidence suggests that arts-based interventions improve sense of achievement, self-confidence, self-esteem, social skills, conflict resolution, problem solving, relationships and sense of belonging amongst adolescents 35 . Equally, these creative activities have been successful in improving mental health. ...
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can harm mental health across the lifespan and reduce life expectancy. We provide a commentary of evidence on the health impacts, and how creative arts and digital interventions may support prevention and recovery.
... Over the last two decades, research has demonstrated that engaging with arts, cultural, and creative activities can have positive mental health and social outcomes (e.g. Dadswell et al., 2020;Daykin, 2017;Jensen et al., 2016;Mansfield et al., 2020;Perkins et al, 2021;Thomson et al., 2018;Wilson et al., 2017;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017). Indeed, the power of the arts has been seen as a potential solution to social challenges that have transformed experiences of health and revealed the limitations of technological medicine (Daykin, 2017). ...
... The benefits reported resonate with existing findings such as enhancing mood, relaxation, and having a sense of purpose (e.g. Jensen et al., 2016;Mansfield et al., 2020;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017). Having a tangible outcome that could be achieved, shown and shared potentially offered a sense of control at a time when general as well as day-to-day uncertainty about the pandemic endured. ...
Background: Emerging evidence indicates that poor mental health and loneliness increased in the UK population during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, media reports suggested increased public engagement with arts and culture during the lockdown period. Aim: To explore the levels of and impact of arts engagement amongst staff and students from one UK university during the first pandemic lockdown. Methods: 112 staff/students completed an online survey which asked about their arts engagement and invited them to write a haiku about their lockdown experiences. Findings: Participants engaged in a wide range of arts, cultural and creative activities; some engaged more frequently and/or in new activities. Participants reported having more time and opportunity to undertake such activities, which improved their mental wellbeing and facilitated social connections. Forty-seven participants wrote a haiku, and it was evident that the haikus provided a different perspective on lockdown experiences, enabling the expression of emotions including fear, loneliness, and a lack of freedom, as well as hope and optimism. Originality: Increased creative engagement supported staff and students through the first UK lockdown and haiku poetry was a powerful method for capturing the nuances of their experiences beyond traditional survey responses.
... Arts-based psychosocial practice has been successfully delivered in a range of complex social contexts (see Boreham, 2004;Sliep et al., 2004;Dalrymple, 2006;Solomon, 2006;Sorsdahl et al., 2009;Jones, 2015;Langa et al., 2016;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017;Ebersöhn et al., 2018). However, even though Arts Therapists in South Africa are registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA), unlike in the United States and many European countries (Waller, 1991), there are no qualified state registered Arts Therapies or Arts-Based Practitioner professionals available in public health. ...
... These findings were further verified using a focus group to assess the relationship between practice and outcomes. Further support of the long-term goals was provided by the systematic review conducted by Zarobe and Bungay (2017). Their resulting analysis of their findings indicated that participating in arts-based practice has an impact on intrinsic and extrinsic components of resilience. ...
Aim: This aim of this study is to describe the development of a program logic model to guide arts-based psychosocial practice delivered in rural South African farming communities affected by transgenerational traumas.
Background: The rationale for developing a program logic model for arts-based psychosocial practice in South Africa was based on the lack of evidence for effective community arts-based psychosocial interventions for collective trauma, unknown consensus about best practices and the need for developing cogent collective psychosocial practices. Further to this, the aims and benefits of the practice required clarity given the psychosocial complexity of the environment within which the practices for this population are being offered. The logic model offers a valuable resource for practitioners, participants and funders to understand the problem being addressed, how practice is defined, as well as the impact of practice and on intermediate and longer term goals.
Methods: The authors used a systematic iterative approach to describe the operationalization of arts-based psychosocial practice. This resulted in the design of the logic model being informed by data from focus groups, an overview of the literature regarding transgerenational trauma in this population, operational policies and organizational documents. The development of the logic model involved actively investigating with practitioners their work with remote farming communities. We thematised practitioners practice constructs to identify salient practice elements and their relationship to perceived benefits and lastly feedback from practitioners and participants following implementation to make adjustments to the logic model.
Results: The results were clearly identified in the form of visual mapping using the design of a program logic model. The logic model was divided into 5 parts and was verified by practitioners following implementation. The parts of the program logic model are (Part 1) main presenting problem, (Part 2) operational processes, (Part 3) practice elements, (Part 4) benefits, and impact and (Part 5) review.
... Encouraging self-expression and individual performance of the skill (as opposed to the right way to complete the skill) allows participants to accomplish tasks in ways that work for them and their bodies [18,35,77]. Participation in creative activities can have a positive effect on behaviour, self-confidence, self-esteem, relationship building, sense of belonging, and mental well-being [79][80][81]. Furthermore, the compatibility and collaboration of circus with other creative art forms, e.g., dance, theatre, music, fine arts adds to its appeal, as the hybrid nature of circus can provide "something for everyone" [14,15,[18][19][20]35], [69] (p. ...
Circus activities are emerging as an engaging and unique health intervention. This scoping review summarises the evidence on this topic for children and young people aged up to 24 years to map (a) participant characteristics, (b) intervention characteristics, (c) health and wellbeing outcomes, and (d) to identify evidence gaps. Using scoping review methodology, a systematic search of five databases and Google Scholar was conducted up to August 2022 for peer-reviewed and grey literature. Fifty-seven of 897 sources of evidence were included (42 unique interventions). Most interventions were undertaken with school-aged participants; however, four studies included participants with age ranges over 15 years. Interventions targeted both general populations and those with defined biopsychosocial challenges (e.g., cerebral palsy, mental illness, or homelessness). Most interventions utilised three or more circus disciplines and were undertaken in naturalistic leisure settings. Dosage could be calculated for 15 of the 42 interventions (range one-96 h). Improvements in physical and/or social-emotional outcomes were reported for all studies. There is emerging evidence of positive health outcomes resulting from circus activities used in general populations and those with defined biopsychosocial challenges. Future research should focus on detailed reporting of intervention elements and increasing the evidence base in preschool-aged children and within populations with the greatest need.
... In addition, there were public displays of arts and creative activities, with the painting and displaying of rainbows in the windows of homes in the UK (Mathers 2020), and communal singing from balconies in Italy (Thorpe 2020). Such engagement can have an important role in response to everyday stressors and a growing body of research demonstrates the positive mental health and wellbeing outcomes associated with the arts, cultural and creative activities (Jensen, Stickley, and Edgely 2016;Wilson et al. 2017;Zarobe and Bungay 2017;Thomson et al. 2018;Mansfield et al. 2020;Perkins et al. 2021). The research evidence also indicates that active engagement such as playing musical instruments, writing poetry, or painting, and/or passive or receptive engagement for example viewing visual art/artefacts in galleries/museums, or listening to music, either individually or with others has positive mental health and wellbeing outcomes. ...
The COVID-19 pandemic placed increasing pressure on university staff with spiralling workloads due to the rapid implementation of changes to university processes and staff being required to take on additional duties due to self-isolating or unwell colleagues. The mental health of students was also adversely affected due to changes in their education and social life and the overall uncertainty caused by the pandemic. Engaging in creative and cultural activities has been demonstrated to have a positive impact on mental wellbeing. The present study aimed to explore how and why staff and students in one UK university engaged with arts, cultural and creative activities, and the perceived impact of this engagement on their mental wellbeing during UK lockdowns. This article presents finding from a series of fourteen qualitative interviews conducted with staff and students in the summer of 2021. Thematic analysis identified that participants engaged in the activities to enhance their mental wellbeing through a sense of achievement, enjoyment, absorption and connecting to others. However, the activities were also used as a coping strategy, to deal with loss, and to make meaning of the uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
... Art can be defined as any means for the expression of individual and social values through concrete and artistic activities and processes (13). The rehabilitating impact of art on both mental health and life satisfaction is well-studied (14)(15)(16)(17). This can be in the form of music (16,18), visual arts (19), dance and movement programs (20), expressive writing such as journaling (21), and other alternatives. ...
... Aiming to deliver an experience that expands way beyond the intervention sessions by equipping participants with creative tools and exercises that they can later practice at home, at their workplace, in nature, or whenever they feel that the acquired behaviour is useful for their condition needs to be a core element of the intervention design. Culture-interventions oriented towards well-being can provide a particularly supportive context for developing resilience and resilience-related skills (Zarobe and Bungay 2017). ...
The article discusses the context and conditions for implementing culture-based interventions for health and well-being in an urban setting. Specifically, the article presents the case study of a cultural intervention aimed at reducing burnout-related symptoms in adults, describing the context of the intervention, the project design, implementation, and the impact assessment. Following the assessment of the implementation, the next steps in order to scale up the piloted intervention for other people confronting burnout have been identified. Further on, the article analyses the factors that future policies and programmes should take into account for enabling local communities to draw most benefits from the contribution of arts and culture for health and well-being, by proposing possible avenues for scaling up the pilot initiative.
... The youth population, especially in socially disadvantaged contexts, has no access to artistic and cultural activities, necessary to guarantee a growth environment that promotes psychic development and relational skills. "Despite the growing evidence on the impact of culture on wellbeing [46,52,53] there is a recurrent argument that is raised in debates involving cultural practitioners and professionals: insisting on the role of culture in promoting wellbeing may be counterproductive in that it characterizes culture as an instrumental activity to promote other goals, however in the public interest. This argument, however, stems from a specific, and totally legitimate, vision of culture as a human activity that finds its justification in itself and has to be appreciated merely for what it is. ...
In line with priorities set by the Italian Ministry of Health and international literature, the “Crisalide project” provides specific care pathways aimed at young adults (YA) with severe mental disorders (SMD). As described in Materials and Methods, it consists of three lines of activity: transition to adult mental health services (TSMREE/CSM 17–19); Diagnostic, Therapeutic, and Assistance Pathways for Young Adults (PDTA-YA); high-intensity treatment center for young adults “Argolab2 Potential Space”. The aim of the study is to assess the results relating to the first three years of implementation of this clinical-organizational model (2018/2020) according to the process indicators identified by the ministry. Among the population aged 18–30 under treatment, results show increased prevalence (30%) and incidence (26%); 0% treatment conclusions due to the expiration of the conventional time limit; 0% involuntary hospitalizations (TSO); 0% STPIT hospitalizations; 0% repeated hospitalizations; 0% hospitalizations in the common mental disorders diagnostic group. Among the population of Argolab2 Potential Space, 45.4% have resumed studies; 40.9% have had a first work experience; 22.7% have obtained educational or training qualifications, and 18.2% live in independent houses. At a time when the academic literature underlines the terrible impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on this population, the present study confirms that specific treatment processes for young populations are a protective factor.
... Inner resources are personal, inner attributes that provide individualised awareness of the inner self and are beneficial to well-being by building resilience and providing a feeling of strength (van Dierendonck et al., 2009). Intrinsic factors are held within the individual, including the need for security and belonging (Zarobe & Bungay, 2017). ...
The focus of this study was an in-depth exploration of early adolescent Sandplay (SP) in a resource-poor environment. The participants aged 9–14 were selected for their age from a children’s home environment. Silent, group SP was offered weekly for six consecutive weeks. SP was tendered in multiple layers of temenos. Of interest was the experience of SP during early adolescence. The qualitative exploration was considered from a Jungian perspective and conducted as a single case study. Research methods included researcher observation, the generation of six sand images of each of the five early adolescent participant’s SP process, interviews with childcare staff and researcher reflections. Initial sand images and childcare staff descriptions of the children highlighted themes of wounding. Initial sand images portray chaotic, overwhelming and threatening scenes, indicative of trauma and vulnerability and the need for containment. Final sand images display balanced, harmonious scenes that support healing. Varying encounters with the Self were depicted in centring actions and subsequent sand scenes included signs of integration and belonging. Indications of transpersonal encounters were characterised by numinous scenes and supported by childcarer descriptions of outstanding interactions with the children. Positive changes included activation and desire to play, increased cooperative and collaborative behaviour as well as a more open and calm demeanour, which reinforces the positive effect of silent group SP. The implications are potentially far-reaching in terms of the relative affordability, accessibility and suitability of this intervention that is not reliant on the verbal skills of the participant or the therapist.
Keywords: Early adolescence, resource-poor environment, silent group Sandplay intervention, temenos, Jungian perspective
... Intervention studies have demonstrated that the arts can provide psychological support for young people . Reviews of research exploring community-based engagement have found that participating in activities such as music, dance, singing, drama, and visual arts can improve self-confidence, self-esteem, social skills, peer interactions, and sense of belonging in adolescence (Bungay & Vella-Burrows, 2013;Daykin et al., 2008;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017). Given this range of benefits, it is likely that arts engagement enhances flourishing overall, but there is very little research testing this. ...
There is growing evidence on the impact of arts engagement on flourishing. However, social gradients in arts engagement and flourishing may have led to an overestimation of this impact, and there is a lack of longitudinal research in young people. We aimed to test the longitudinal associations between arts engagement and flourishing in emerging adults, accounting for observed and unobserved individual characteristics. We included 3,333 participants aged 18–28 from the Transition into Adulthood Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. We measured flourishing across emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing, and frequency of engagement in artistic, musical, or theatrical organized activities, biennially 2005–2019. We analyzed data using fixed effects regression and Arellano-Bond methods to control for bidirectional relationships. Increases in arts engagement were associated with increases in flourishing, before and after adjusting for time-varying confounders. This relationship was driven by enhanced psychological and social wellbeing. After controlling for bidirectionality, increases in arts engagement predicted subsequent improvements in flourishing and social wellbeing. In sensitivity analyses, residential area was a moderator; arts engagement was only associated with increased flourishing in metropolitan (and not non-metropolitan) areas. Increases in arts engagement are associated with enhanced flourishing within individuals, and these associations hold across many subgroups of the population. Those in non-metropolitan areas may have fewer opportunities for arts engagement. Future work must consider how funding can be distributed to ensure that the arts are accessible across communities and geographical areas, providing all young people with opportunities to experience their potential benefits.
... Through the arts, people may better understand themselves by learning about their own character, motives, and positive qualities, as well as enhancing their sense of self-worth and personal value. The reviews outlined in the previous paragraph also found that visual arts, dance programmes, and music, singing, and drama can enhance self-esteem and help children, adolescents, and adults to develop and appreciate their self-identity (59)(60)(61)(62). Another systematic review of creative arts interventions for older adults identified common mechanisms of change across art, dance, drama, and music, which included an enhanced self-concept, as people developed more positive perceptions of themselves through these activities (69). ...
... Wiele badań wskazuje również na związek pomiędzy aktywnym podejmowaniem działań twórczych a wzrostem poziomu odczuwanego dobrostanu, rozumianego jako (a) dobrostan afektywny (pozytywne emocje w codziennym życiu), (b) dobrostan ewaluatywny (nasze zadowolenie z życia) oraz (c) dobrostan eudajmonistyczny (nasze poczucie znaczenia, kontroli, autonomii i celu; Csikszentmihalyi, 1996;Manheim, 1998;Quarrie, 2015;Waterman i in, 2010;WHO, 2019). Na przykład zaobserwowano liczne korzyści płynące z zajmowania się rękodziełem, które jak się okazało może prowadzić do zwiększenia witalności, poczucia odmłodzenia umysłu i psychiki, wzmocnienia odporności, polepszenia jakości życia oraz zdolności odnajdywania nowych celów w życiu (Hallam, Creech 2016;Zarobe, Bungay, 2017). Zdaniem Futterman Collier i von Károlyi (2014), rękodzieło stanowi nawet aktywność o tzw. ...
Książka zawiera przegląd badań na temat znaczenia twórczości dla kształtowania, utrzymywania oraz powracania do zdrowia oraz dobrostanu. Ukazuje również model wyjaśniający mechanizm „prozdrowotnego” oddziaływania twórczości, na podstawie dotychczasowych ustaleń teoretycznych oraz najnowszych wyników badań empirycznych. Dla uzyskania pełnego obrazu tego zjawiska uwzględnione zostały zarówno procesy pozytywnie oddziałujące na zdrowie, jak i czynniki ryzyka towarzyszące twórczości, które mogą być dla niego pewnym zagrożeniem. Ukazane zostały także najważniejsze kierunki rozwoju i wyzwania w zakresie badań naukowych i praktyki w obszarze związków między twórczością a funkcjonowaniem zdrowotnym.
... Further, different ECA activities are differentially associated with mental health. For example, children and youth who participated in arts or performance activities (i.e., music, drama, or visual arts) reported high levels of self-confidence, selfesteem, and belonging (Zarobe and Bungay, 2017) and low instances of risky behaviors such as alcohol-use (Eccles et al., 2003) while students who participated in academic clubs (i.e., debate team, chess, or tutoring) demonstrated high educational and occupational outcomes in early adulthood (Eccles et al., 2003). ...
In Ontario, Canada, school extracurricular activities and sports were modified or canceled for a prolonged period due to public health restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The present study aims to examine the association of changes to extracurricular and sport participation and child and youth mental health. Data were collected on child and youth mental health symptoms ( n = 908) and participation in extracurricular activities and sports in the 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 academic years. Results indicated that pre-COVID (2019–2020) participation in either extracurricular activities or sports was associated with reduced anxiety, inattention, and hyperactivity during the pandemic (β range −0.08 to −0.11, p < 0.05). Participation in either extracurricular activities or sports during-COVID (2020–2021) was associated with lower depressive symptoms (β range −0.09 to −0.10, p < 0.05). Findings suggest that participation in extracurricular activities and/or school sports both before or during the COVID-19 pandemic were associated with better mental health outcomes in children and youth. Implications of this work consider future situations where restrictions on extracurricular and sport participation are reinstated and the impact of child and youth mental health.
... Most of the literature and research has focused on reducing anxiety and promoting social inclusion and wellbeing for adults through the arts (Binnie, 2010;Boydell, 2020;Irwin et al., 2022). There is little research on the wellbeing impact of arts engagement programs for young people and children (Hayes et al., 2020;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017). ...
... 19 20 In children and young adults, arts activities can be an important social resource. 21 In Latin America, studies about resources to cope with adversity have been carried out in the context of social violence, 2 22 23 poverty, 24 forced displacement 25 and medical conditions, 26 but to the best of our knowledge, no study has explored the resources that help young people in this region to overcome mental distress. ...
Objective:
To explore which resources and activities help young people living in deprived urban environments in Latin America to recover from depression and/or anxiety.
Design:
A multimethod, qualitative study with 18 online focus groups and 12 online structured group conversations embedded into arts workshops.
Setting:
This study was conducted in Bogotá (Colombia), Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Lima (Peru).
Participants:
Adolescents (15-16 years old) and young adults (20-24 years old) with capacity to provide assent/consent and professionals (older than 18 years of age) that had experience of professionally working with young people were willing to share personal experience within a group, and had capacity to provide consent.
Results:
A total of 185 participants took part in this study: 111 participants (36 adolescents, 35 young adults and 40 professionals) attended the 18 focus groups and 74 young people (29 adolescents and 45 young adults) took part in the 12 arts workshops. Eight categories captured the resources and activities that were reported by young people as helpful to overcome mental distress: (1) personal resources, (2) personal development, (3) spirituality and religion, (4) social resources, (5) social media, (6) community resources, (7) activities (subcategorised into artistic, leisure, sports and outdoor activities) and (8) mental health professionals. Personal and social resources as well as artistic activities and sports were the most common resources identified that help adolescents and young adults to overcome depression and anxiety.
Conclusion:
Despite the different contexts of the three cities, young people appear to use similar resources to overcome mental distress. Policies to improve the mental health of young people in deprived urban settings should address the need of community spaces, where young people can play sports, meet and engage in groups, and support community organisations that can enable and facilitate a range of social activities.
... Creating change in one's community may increase feelings of empowerment and hence overall well-being [36,50]. Because it involves wrestling with challenges and unexpected situations in new surroundings, civic engagement requires initiation, creativity, and the acquisition of communication and leadership skills, which can promote a sense of self-competence and efficacy [64]. ...
Civic engagement is thought to contribute to well-being among young adults. However, less is known about the ways in which civic engagement promotes well-being in general and in particular in socially excluded populations. This study investigated whether civic engagement contributes to life satisfaction and hope in a sample of 127 socially excluded young Israeli women who participated in social activism programs for a period of eight months. A mediation model incorporating self-efficacy, meaning in life, and identity exploration was used to examine the contribution of positive attitudes toward civic engagement, civic engagement skills, and political awareness to the participants’ life satisfaction and hope. Indirect effects were found between positive attitudes toward civic engagement, civic engagement skills, and political awareness and the participants’ life satisfaction and hope via self-efficacy. Positive attitudes toward civic engagement and political awareness also predicted the participants’ life satisfaction via meaning in life. A positive direct effect was found between political awareness and hope. However, contrary to the hypothesis, a negative direct effect was found between positive attitudes toward civic engagement and life satisfaction. Civic engagement skills and political awareness also predicted identity exploration. These findings underscore the need for clinicians to be aware of the potential benefits of civic engagement for the well-being of socially excluded populations.
... Evidence-based research, reviews, policy, practice and programs, informed by the discipline of 'Arts and Health' (also sometimes referred to as ' Arts in Health, ' ' Arts for Health, ' ' Arts-Health') (White, 2009), have the potential to positively contribute to the health and wellbeing of the general population and specific population groups (e.g., young people, older adults, LGBTQI+ people, refugees, people with a disability, people who are isolated, etc) (Smith, 2002;South, 2004;Staricoff, 2004;Putland, 2008;White, 2009;Fraser et al., 2015;Mapuana et al., 2015;Menzer, 2015;Clift and Camic, 2016;Davies et al., 2016;Wreford, 2016;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017;Daykin et al., 2018; A New Approach (ANA), 2019; Vella-Burrows et al., 2019; Davies and Pescud, 2020;Corbin et al., 2021). A recent systematic review of both qualitative and quantitative articles found 'strong evidence' of the impact of arts engagement on mental wellbeing, 'moderate to strong evidence' on social health and 'emerging/low evidence' related to healthy eating, physical activity, preventing tobacco use and preventing harm from alcohol (Davies and Pescud, 2020). ...
Compared to other health fields, the discipline of Arts and Health is relatively new, therefore a glossary is useful to facilitate communication and to clarify terminology and concepts from which evidence-based research, comparative studies, reviews, policy, practice and programs can be developed.
... The Feeling Funny programme seeks to improve the mental well-being of young people through comedy. There is a plethora of research which emphasises the positive impact of the arts on the wellbeing of young people; however, this tends to focus on music, drama, dance, singing and visual arts (Lee et al., 2020;Wang et al., 2020;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017). Although rather limited, there is a growing body of evidence which highlights the positive impact that humour can have on an individual's health and well-being (Crawford and Caltabiano, 2011;Twardzicki and Jones, 2017). ...
Assessing the impact of community-based programmes presents many challenges. One difficulty encountered is how to develop appropriate research methods to capture the impact of the work while also meeting the demands of external funders. For almost two decades, the charity organisation The Comedy Trust (TCT) have attempted to navigate these challenges. In 2018, TCT had the opportunity to work with a university-based researcher to develop their approaches to research. We aimed to explore what happens when you move away from quantifiable predetermined methods to take a more participatory approach to work alongside the participants of the programme. We decided to focus on their Feeling Funny Youth programme, which is aimed at young people to support their mental health and well-being. This paper is a case study of how the programme worked with a group of young people based within a youth organisation. In this paper, we offer a comparison of the standardised tool adopted by TCT with the development of more creative and participatory methods developed in collaboration with young people who participated in the programme. We offer an insight into what can be gained by adopting more creative and participatory methods to capture the experiences of young people, as this enabled us to really hear the important messages they want to share.
... Although not statistically significant, the same trend was also observed for the ACT workshop, in which students gained more positive views about their community. Our results are supported by recent systematic reviews of studies examining the efficacy of participatory creative activities in the health and well-being of children [28,29]. They included music, dance, singing, drama, and visual arts taking place in community settings or at schools, and found that despite methodological weaknesses, these activities could have positive effects on children's levels of knowledge, behavioral changes, and, most notably, self-confidence, self-esteem, relationship building, and a sense of belonging. ...
The “Creative Heath” project, a participatory school activity to foster community resilience, was implemented in Fukushima, Japan, and children’s experiences of the project were assessed both quantitatively and qualitatively. The project consists of three workshops: BODY, FOOD, and ACT, with activities to facilitate students’ scientific and creative thinking, working in teams, presenting, and expressing their opinions. The first two schools participated with 105 students aged 9–11 years old. Before and after each workshop, students were given questionnaires to rate their satisfaction with their own health (BODY), local foods (FOOD), and the community at large (ACT) on a five-level scale, with space to add free comments. Ratings for BODY and FOOD changed significantly, and the proportion of students who increased their rating of an evaluation indicator after each workshop was 25% for BODY, 28% for FOOD, and 25% for ACT. Text analysis of free comments showed that students in the “increased” group appreciated presenting, measuring, learning connections between nutrition and health, and working collaboratively with peers. Children perceived their health and the foods in their community more positively after participating. Moreover, the Creative Health project could be a way to enhance children’s creativity and autonomy as agents of change in the community.
... Benefits for the health and wellbeing of children and young people can be equally obtained through creativity and instances of arts-based interventions. There is significant evidence showing that engagement with the arts can aid physical, cognitive, linguistic, social and emotional development (APPG, 2017), as well as improvements in mental health and social inclusion (Clift and Camic, 2015;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017;Daykin, 2019;Durham Commission on Creativity and Education, 2019). There is also growing research that delves into the impact of arts therapies, including drama, art, music, and dance movement therapy specifically for children and young people (Moula, 2020;Moula et al., 2020). ...
Background
The time that children and young people spend in nature and outdoor spaces has decreased significantly over the past 30 years. This was exacerbated with a further 60% decline post-COVID-19. Research demonstrating that natural environments have a positive impact on health and wellbeing has led to prescription of nature-based health interventions and green prescribing, although evidence for its use is predominantly limited to adults. Growing evidence also shows the impact of arts on all aspects of health and wellbeing. However, what has received scant attention in literature is the interconnection between the two: arts and nature.
Aims
This review synthesizes the literature surrounding the interconnectedness between arts and nature, and their impact on the health and wellbeing of children and young people.
Methods
Eight major electronic databases were systematically searched, while hand-searching included 20 journals, six books, and contact with experts. The review was conducted using the Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews, PRISMA guidelines and TIDieR template. All stages were conducted independently by two researchers and the protocol was published on PROSPERO (Registration no.: CRD42021286574).
Results
Although 9,314 records were identified, only 11 records were included as most studies focused either on arts or nature, but not both. Studies were conducted in United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Australia, and Hong Kong, in a range of spaces such as forests, woodlands, beaches, parks, fields, gardens, and school playgrounds. The review encompasses data from 602 participants in total.
Discussion
Arts-in-nature offered an inclusive medium to engage all children and young people, especially those who might otherwise remain disinterested about environmental issues and disengaged with educational programs. Further, arts-in-nature provided stimuli to increase nature connectivity, understand environmental issues and explore ways to prevent environmental disasters. This led to higher environmental awareness and pro-environmental behaviors, and potential decrease in eco-anxiety.
Conclusion
Although the quality of qualitative studies was high, the quality of quantitative studies was low or unclear, thus quantitative evidence is still at its infancy. Implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed, such as methods and activities to strengthen future interventions. Scaling-up existing interventions may lead to wider recognition and inclusion of arts-in-nature in future health guidelines, including green prescribing.
... Non-formal education can have as great an emancipatory capacity, as literature on social resilience (Bandura, 1993;Rodhes & Schechter, 2012;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017), on the "pedagogy of the oppressed" (Freire, 1970) or participatory education (e.g., Castelloe, & Watson, 1999) have shown. Non-formal education contributes to relaxing some of the procedures of formal education that act as barriers to certain students, particularly those coming from more disadvantaged backgrounds. ...
This article discusses how non‐formal arts education attenuates socioeconomic and cultural barriers in a vulnerable context. Although cultural capital has usually been conceived as dependent on high socioeconomic status, we explore the inclusiveness of a project of non‐formal education and how it enhances the capacity of youth to achieve empowerment and self‐confidence through the arts. We analyse the case study of a non‐formal arts educational organisation located in a deprived neighbourhood of Barcelona (Spain) and identify several key factors associated with successful social inclusion and its limitations. We find that the pedagogical processes involved create both learning opportunities and social and interpersonal skills useful for the present and future lives of the young participants. Methodologically, the case study combines non‐participant observation of the different activities of the organisation and semi‐structured qualitative interviews with young people and educators. The article concludes with some recommendations for considering artistic non‐formal education as a tool in any social inclusion agenda.
... Mental health benefits can equally be obtained through creativity and instances of artsbased interventions. Through opportunities to engage creatively with arts interventions, positive mental health results have been evidenced (Daykin, 2019;Clift & Camic, 2016;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017). There is evidence that arts education can aid physical, cognitive, linguistic, social and emotional development (APPG, 2017), as well as improving both mental health and social inclusion (Durham Commission on Creativity and Education, 2019). ...
Published version: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.858781
Background: The time that children and young people spend in nature and outdoor spaces has decreased significantly over the past 30 years. This was exacerbated with a further 60% decline post-Covid-19 (Natural England, 2020). Research demonstrating that natural environments have a positive impact on health and wellbeing has led to prescription of nature-based health interventions and green prescribing, although evidence for its use is predominantly limited to adults. Growing evidence also shows the impact of arts on all aspects of health and wellbeing. However, what has received scant attention in literature is the interconnection between the two: arts and nature.
Aims: This review synthesises the literature surrounding the interconnectedness between arts and nature, and their impact on the health and wellbeing of children and young people.
Methods: Eight major electronic databases were systematically searched, while hand-searching included 20 journals, five books, and contact with experts. The review was conducted using the Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews, PRISMA guidelines and TIDieR template. All stages were conducted independently by two researchers and the protocol was published on PROSPERO (Registration no.:CRD42021286574).
Results: Although 9,314 records were identified, only 11 records were included as most studies focused either on arts or nature, but not both. Studies were conducted in UK, USA, Ireland, Australia, and Hong Kong, in a range of spaces such as forests, woodlands, beaches, parks, fields, gardens, and school playgrounds. The review encompasses data from 602 participants in total.
Discussion: Arts-in-nature offered an inclusive medium to engage all children and young people, especially those who might otherwise remain disinterested about environmental issues and disengaged with educational programs. Further, arts-in-nature provided stimuli to increase nature connectivity, understand environmental issues and explore ways to prevent environmental disasters. This led to higher environmental awareness and pro-environmental behaviours, and potential decrease in eco-anxiety.
Conclusion: Although the quality of qualitative studies was high, the quality of quantitative studies was low or unclear, thus quantitative evidence is still at its infancy. Implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed, such as methods and activities to strengthen future interventions. Scaling-up existing interventions may lead to wider recognition and inclusion of arts-in-nature in future health guidelines, including green prescribing.
... Several studies examined the impact of various types of organized sport and non-sport activities on aspects of child and adolescent mental health. These suggest a possible beneficial impact on mental health such as behavioral outcomes, self-esteem and self-confidence (Bungay and Vella-Burrows, 2013;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017). Contrary, some studies have observed harmful consequences of organized activities, such as risk behavior and bullying (Badura et al., 2017;Fredricks and Eccles, 2008;Matjasko et al., 2019;Randall and Bohnert, 2012) In two of these studies this depended on the amount of time that was spend in the organized activities (Matjasko et al., 2019;Randall and Bohnert, 2012) () As far as we know, there currently is no overview aggregating the available evidence from systematic reviews on the impact of participation in organized sport and non-sport activities on child and adolescent mental health, while such an overview would be highly relevant for policymakers in designing more effective preventive youth policies. ...
Mental health problems are a leading cause of health-related disability among children and adolescents. Organized activities are a possible preventive factor for mental health problems. An aggregated overview of evidence is relevant for youth policymakers and is lacking so far.
Thus we aim to provide an overview of published systematic reviews and meta-analyses on the impact of participation in organized sport and non-sport activities (e.g. arts, music) on childhood and adolescent mental health. Systematic reviews were identified through a search in five databases (Embase, MEDLINE, Web of Science core collection, CINAHL and PsycINFO) on 25-March-2021. Systematic reviews about organized activities and mental health outcomes in 0-21-year-olds published in English were included. Two independent reviewers assessed titles, abstracts and full texts, performed data-extraction and quality assessment using the AMSTAR-2 and assessed the quality of evidence. Out of 833 studies, six were considered eligible. Quality of the reviews ranged from critically low to moderate. Most reviews focused on organized sport activities, focusing on: team sport, level of sport involvement, extracurricular and community sport activities. Indications of a positive impact on mental health outcomes were found for participation in team sport, in (school) clubs, and in extracurricular and community sport and non-sport activities. We found a small positive impact of organized sport activities on mental health outcomes among children and adolescents. This seems not to depend on any specific type of organized sport activity. Limited evidence was found for organized non-sport activities.
... Empirical studies have shown that engaging in art activities such as drawing, singing, performing, and writing has immediate and prolonged psychological benefits (Drake, 2019;Fancourt et al., 2020;Krpan et al., 2013). For example, participating in creative arts can promote momentary pleasure as well as self-esteem, self-confidence (Zarobe & Bungay, 2017), autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Koehler & Neubauer, 2020), which are important determinants of life satisfaction (Diener & Diener, 2009;Reis et al., 2000). Furthermore, art engagement is positively related to physical well-being, including longevity, by lowering stress and raising coping resources that contribute to the biological management system (Cohen, 2006;Fancourt & Steptoe, 2019). ...
Previous research has indicated that engaging in art activities is beneficial to both psychological and physical well-being; however, few studies have examined the link between attitudes toward art and well-being. In the present study, we have termed a positive and appreciative attitude toward art as savoring art and have investigated the relationship between savoring art and individual well-being. Study 1 (N = 501) examined the associations between savoring art and psychological well-being (PWB) as well as subjective well-being (SWB), the two most widely used terms for meaningful and hedonic happiness, respectively. The results suggested that savoring art was linked to a greater level of both PWB and SWB. Furthermore, Study 2 (N = 144) demonstrated that savoring art correlated with reduced biological health risk, as measured by objective biomarkers for inflammation and hypertension. The results from the present study highlight the potential psychological and physical benefits of savoring art, regardless of individuals’ socioeconomic condition, level of openness to experience, or art engagement frequency. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)
... 6e8 A rapid review explored the role of arts activities in enhancing mental well-being and resilience in children and young people and concluded that although the research evidence is limited, there is some support for providing structured group arts activities to help build resilience and contribute to positive mental well-being of children and young people. 9 More recently, a report for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport in the UK reported that the evidence base on the effectiveness of the arts on aspects of well-being for children and young people was excellent, consistent and relatively generalisable. 10 Globally, there is increasing recognition that participating in arts activities can support and enhance health and well-being. ...
Objectives
Arts on Prescription (AoP) programmes were among the first forms of social prescribing in the UK. Most of the studies of AoP programmes focus on adults and currently there is no published research on the impact of AoP on children and young people. This study investigates the impact of 10 weekly AoP workshops delivered in a school setting on the mental well-being and resilience of adolescents aged 13–16 years at risk of emotional or behavioural problems.
Study design
The study design used is a longitudinal cohort study of an AoP programme implemented in 10 schools in the East of England.
Methods
Changes in mental well-being and resilience of school children were assessed using the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS), and the True Resilience Scale applied pre- and post-intervention, with follow-up at 3 months. In total, 91 young people participated in the programme and 65 completed pre- and post-intervention measures.
Results
Data from the WEMWBS and True Resilience Scale indicated that the AoP Programme had a positive impact on both well-being and resilience of participants with a statistically significant increase recorded immediately post-intervention. However, these improvements were not sustained upon observation at 3-month follow-up.
Conclusion
This article presents the first indication of the effectiveness of a programme of AoP workshops on the mental well-being and resilience of children and young people. It suggests the potential of AoP as a means of support the mental health and well-being of secondary school aged children.
... 5 A review of the relevant literature shows that creative activities with music, dance, songs, drama, and visual arts have positive effects on children and youth's self-confidence, self-esteem, relationship building, and sense of belonging. 6 Therefore, we hypothesized that singing a song and using the tactile sense as the media would result in better oral health, measured by assessing the plaque index score after toothbrushing among children with visual impairment. ...
Dental health education should be introduced to children, including those with physical disabilities. Children with visual impairment have poor oral hygiene and a high plaque index. Educational methods for children with visual impairment have been developed, such as the audio tactile performance method where verbal information is given, followed by the children's emulation of the model while brushing their teeth. In this study, we aimed to analyze the effect of tooth-brushing intervention, using an audio song and dental model, on the plaque index of children with visual impairment. Methods: This study involved 30 children with visual impairment, aged 7-12 years old, who are free from other form handicapping conditions and who were able to read with Braille. The teachers instructed and guided the children in brushing their teeth, following the audio song and dental model every day for one week. We assessed their dental plaque index before and after the one-week. Results: Tooth-brushing intervention with the audio song and dental model decreased the participants' plaque index. The mean of the plaque index before the intervention was 1.23 0.39, dropping to 0.69 0.28 after the intervention, with a statistically significant difference (p< 0.05) was compared using the paired t-test. Conclusion: Children with visual impairment could maintain an adequate of oral hygiene with a decrease their plaque index score after brush theirteeth using an audio song and dental model.
... When aimed at youth, actions of this nature can empower both the individual and collective levels and foster reflections on being in the world 33 . Scientific productions on children's mental health and mental health actions through art and culture are incipient, especially when it comes to a more salutogenic perspective on health 34 . ...
Resumo A Promoção em Saúde (PS) apresenta um fortalecimento recente dentro das políticas públicas e quando se trata da infância e adolescência na América Latina (AL) observa-se ainda forte consonância com as determinações internacionais. Considerando o aumento de prevalência de sofrimento psíquico nesta faixa etária e a construção histórica política dos países latino-americanos abordar a PS se torna mais urgente. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi identificar e analisar, por meio de uma revisão integrativa da literatura, produções acadêmicas que tratam de estratégias de PS mental de adolescentes na AL e, assim, visibilizar as ações e provocar reflexões dialogadas com as críticas Sulistas, representadas pela declaração de Bogotá. Após a aplicação dos critérios de inclusão e exclusão, foram selecionados 6 estudos. Identificou-se que o principal espaço onde as ações são desenvolvidas é a escola. Além disso, como medidas potenciais foram identificadas a capacitação dos profissionais, a ação grupal e o fortalecimento da atenção primária e territorial. Discute-se que a realidade socioeconômica estruturada historicamente da AL reflete uma organização própria das ações em PS. Com isso, a visibilização das estratégias que potencializam a baixo custo uma melhora na saúde mental de adolescentes pode contribuir com a reflexão atual.
... Several potentially promising programs-including prevention programs that do not explicitly target SUD but do target important risk and protective factors-fell outside the scope of this review. For example, participation in arts activities has been found to promote children's socioemotional development, resilience, and mental wellbeing (Holochwost et al., 2018;Menzer, 2015;Zarobe & Bungay, 2017)-all of which may protect against SUD (HHS, 2018). Cultural arts programs have been found to support youth in the juvenile justice system in acquiring adaptive social, vocational, and emotional skills that foster self-esteem and self-efficacy and reduce interest in committing crimes (Stinson, 2009). ...
In October 2017, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services declared the opioid crisis a national public health emergency and prioritized identifying effective, evidence-based strategies for pain management and the prevention and treatment of substance use disorder (SUD). Increasingly, the arts have become more widely established and accepted as health-promoting practices in the United States and around the world. As the U.S. health care system moves toward greater integration of physical and behavioral health, arts-based interventions should be considered among potential complementary approaches for managing pain and preventing and treating SUD. We conducted an integrative literature review to summarize and synthesize the evidence on the role of the arts in the management of pain and in the prevention and treatment of SUD, including opioid use disorder. The available evidence suggests that music interventions may reduce participants’ pain, reduce the amount of pain medication they take, improve their SUD treatment readiness and motivation, and reduce craving. Few studies examined art forms other than music, limiting the ability to draw conclusions for those art forms. Given the critical need to identify effective strategies for managing pain and preventing and treating SUD, future research on arts-based interventions should examine maintenance of pain management and SUD treatment benefits over time and outcomes related to SUD prevention.
... More specifically, there is a subset of programs and academic literature focusing on the potential of arts-based youth programs. Arts-based youth programs engage youth, prevent negative outcomes such as school dropout (Charmaraman & Hall, 2011), and bolster positive outcomes such as empowerment, mental health, sense of belonging, and skill-building (e.g., Zarobe & Bungay, 2017). Many people have argued that there is a powerful connection between art and empowerment (e.g., Gude, 2015) and arts-based drama and visual arts programs (e.g., Dutton, 2001;Wallace-DiGarbo & Hill, 2006, Wright et al., 2006 have youth engagement and empowerment as central to their purpose. ...
Authoring Action (A2) is a youth-focused, arts-based, afterschool and summer program. A2’s mission is “to transform the lives of youth and the world through the power of creative writing, spoken word, visual and media arts, film-making and leadership education that promotes positive systemic change.” Using in-depth interviews, this study aimed to understand how this arts-based program affects youth development. Participants in this study (N=36) were alums of Authoring Action (A2), interviewed when they were between the ages of 17-32. Over half identified as female (N=21). Most A2 participants were youth of color and participated in A2 between ages 13-17. Interview data were coded following several steps: generating initial codes, searching for themes, reviewing themes, defining and naming themes, and generating a report. Four themes describe the impacts of A2 for program participants: communication, cathartic and transformative experiences, connection, and critical consciousness. Programmatic features—getting paid to participate, shared group identity, and open access to program leaders and peers – were meaningful to youth participants. The mission and programmatic features of A2 support youth development; we discuss practices that may benefit other arts-based youth programs and the implications of such practices for youth development.
... Research indicates that music-based approaches to mental health care can increase patients' likelihood of accessing care 2 (Schroeder, 2018;Fancourt and Finn, 2019) while reducing its costs (Aalbers et al., 2017). Studies also suggest that mental health treatments that incorporate music may advance health by delivering benefits long associated with arts exposure and participation, such as increased social connectivity (Kreutz, 2014;Welch et al., 2014;Fancourt et al., 2016), additional health-enhancing behaviors (Theorell and Kreutz, 2012;Løkken et al., 2018), and the promotion of identity and resilience (Boggan et al., 2017;Zarobe and Bungay, 2017). Taking place in both clinical and community settings, studies of music's effects on mental health have been conducted within disciplines including psychology (McFerran et al., 2018;Pezzin et al., 2018); neurology (Ventouras et al., 2015;Tan et al., 2016); music therapy (Moe, 2002;Gold et al., 2006); nursing (McCaffrey and Locsin, 2002;Pölkki et al., 2012), dance therapy (Meekums et al., 2015;Campbell, 2020); and psychiatry (Grocke et al., 2008;Grasser et al., 2019), among others. ...
Mental and substance use disorders have been identified as the leading cause of global disability, and the global burden of mental illness is concentrated among those experiencing disability due to serious mental illness (SMI). Music has been studied as a support for SMIs for decades, with promising results; however, a lack of synthesized evidence has precluded increased uptake of and access to music-based approaches. The purpose of this scoping review was to identify the types and quantity of research at intersections of music and SMIs, document evidentiary gaps and opportunities, and generate recommendations for improving research and practice. Studies were included if they reported on music's utilization in treating or mitigating symptoms related to five SMIs: schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder, or post-traumatic stress disorder. Eight databases were searched; screening resulted in 349 included studies for data extraction. Schizophrenia was the most studied SMI, with bipolar disorder studied the least. Demographics, settings, and activity details were found to be inconsistently and insufficiently reported; however, listening to recorded music emerged as the most common musical activity, and activity details appeared to have been affected by the conditions under study. RCTs were the predominant study design, and 271 unique measures were utilized across 289 primary studies. Over two-thirds of primary studies (68.5%) reported positive results, with 2.8% reporting worse results than the comparator, and 12% producing indeterminate results. A key finding is that evidence synthesis is precluded by insufficient reporting, widely varied outcomes and measures, and intervention complexity; as a result, widespread changes are necessary to reduce heterogeneity (as feasible), increase replicability and transferability, and improve understandings of mechanisms and causal pathways. To that end, five detailed recommendations are offered to support the sharing and development of information across disciplines.
Grib Engagementet er et kulturministerielt initiativ, som skal understøtte, at flere børn og unge får adgang og lyst til kunstnerisk deltagelse. Gennem Grib Engagementet har en række kommuner fået tilskud til lokale modelforsøg, hvor de har eksperimenteret og udviklet nye kunstpædagogiske praksisser. I løbet af 2021 og 2022 er der blevet gennemført 27 modelforsøg, hvor medarbejdere fra musik- og kulturskoler, daginstitutioner, skoler, fritidsklubber, ungdomsskoler, biblioteker, spillesteder, museer, teatre, socialpædagogiske indsatser og kommunale forvaltninger har arbejdet sammen på tværs. Derigennem er der skabt en lang række indsigter om, hvad der skal til for at give endnu flere børn og unge muligheder for at udfolde sig kunstnerisk.
I denne rapport dokumenteres det arbejde, der er foregået i regi af Grib Engagementet. Rapporten er udarbejdet af Kim Boeskov, ph.d. og adjunkt ved Rytmisk Musikkonservatorium, på opdrag af Kulturministeriet. Ifølge puljeopslaget skal den faglige evaluering af initiativet opsamle erfaringerne og danne grundlag for at vurdere, hvordan lovgivning og andre indsatser kan udformes for bedst muligt at understøtte, at flere børn og unge deltager aktivt i kunstneriske aktiviteter. Formålet med rapporten er således at formidle viden om de faktorer, der er særligt vigtige at være opmærksomme på, når man vil styrke børn og unges adgang til og deltagelse i kunstneriske aktiviteter. Blikket rettes imidlertid ikke kun mod de konkrete pædagogiske værktøjer, der kan tages i brug i forhold til forskellige målgrupper, men også mod de samarbejder på tværs og de større strukturer, der på forskellige måder definerer og muliggør børn og unges aktive deltagelse i kunstneriske aktiviteter. Baseret på de erfaringer, som er skabt i Grib Engagementet, og med inddragelse af andre undersøgelser og relevant forskning udgør denne rapport et vidensgrundlag, der kan understøtte udviklingen af et inkluderende og engagerende kulturliv for alle børn og unge, der vokser op i Danmark.
Parenting is a critical influence on the development of children across the globe. This handbook brings together scholars with expertise on parenting science and interventions for a comprehensive review of current research. It begins with foundational theories and research topics, followed by sections on parenting children at different ages, factors that affect parenting such as parental mental health or socioeconomic status, and parenting children with different characteristics such as depressed and anxious children or youth who identify as LGBTQ. It concludes with a section on policy implications, as well as prevention and intervention programs that target parenting as a mechanism of change. Global perspectives and the cultural diversity of families are highlighted throughout. Offering in-depth analysis of key topics such as risky adolescent behavior, immigration policy, father engagement, family involvement in education, and balancing childcare and work, this is a vital resource for understanding the most effective policies to support parents in raising healthy children.
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), including family dysfunction as well as abuse and neglect, have enduring effects on development. Research across diverse populations documents that ACEs are prevalent and cumulative, influencing children’s developing mental, emotional, and physical systems that affect long-term physical and mental health, social relationships, and parenting attitudes and behaviors. Protective and compensatory experiences (PACEs), including nurturing relationships and stable, supportive environments, can mitigate the effects of ACEs, disrupting the intergenerational transmission of adversity. In this chapter, we summarize the effects of ACEs on neurobiological, cognitive, social, and emotional development. Next, we discuss the effects of cumulative protective experiences and the introduce the concept of Balanced Parenting to promote resilience in the face of adversity. We include examples of how parents and other caregivers can effectively parent children with a history of ACEs at different developmental stages, and conclude with a discussion of new directions for research and practice.
Recent research has proven the importance of non-cognitive determinants, such as motivation and resilience, in improving reading achievement. This study provides insights on how these two determinants are displayed by students living in contexts of high social vulnerability. A mixed methodology was used to conduct the study in six schools across the O’Higgins Region of Chile. A reading comprehension test and questionnaires about resilience and reading motivation were responded by 192 eighth grade students (mean age = 13.49 years). The results identified students with high, average, and low reading achievement. Subsequently, 32 students participated in interviews, as did 9 mothers, 6 language teachers, and 6 school principals. The results showed that, even in a highly segregated educational system, factors such as perceived self-efficacy, intrinsic motivation, and family support are significantly related to reading achievement. This investigation underscores how student and familial life experiences influence reading achievement.
Arts engagement is a health-related behavior that may be influenced by social inequalities. While the COVID-19 pandemic provided new opportunities for some people to engage in the arts, it might have created barriers for others. We aimed to examine whether there was social patterning in home-based arts engagement during the pandemic in the United States (US), and whether predictors of engagement differed according to the type of arts activity. We included 4,731 adults who participated in the US COVID-19 Social Study between April and July 2020. Three types of home-based arts engagement were considered: reading for pleasure, arts or crafts activities, and digital arts activities. Using logistic regression models, we tested cross-sectional associations between a broad range of demographic, socioeconomic, psychosocial, and health-related factors as well as adverse events and worries during lockdown and each type of arts engagement. The factors most strongly associated with all three types of arts engagement were social support, social network size, age, race/ethnicity, keyworker status, and experiencing physical or psychological abuse during the pandemic. However, most socioeconomic and health-related factors were not associated with arts engagement, including household income and mental and physical health problems. Overall, our findings indicate that the social gradient in arts engagement was reduced in the first four months of the COVID-19 pandemic in the US. Given the health benefits of arts engagement, the potential diversification of arts audiences during the pandemic is promising for both population-level health and wellbeing and the future of the arts and cultural sector.
Youth with disabilities have a higher risk of experiencing mental health problems than their non-disabled peers. In part, this results from their social exclusion and dearth of social networks. An intervention informed by positive psychology principles and peer mentoring approaches was developed and evaluated with 12 youths with disabilities who had musical interests and talents as musicians. It included the real-world experience of applying the training in a school-based music project with over 200 typically developing pupils aged nine years in four schools. Evaluation data were obtained from project staff, self-ratings by the mentors and through group interviews with them, as well as from reactions of school pupils and interviews with six teachers. The study confirmed the benefit of music and peer mentoring as a means of promoting the self-esteem and self-confidence of youth with disabilities. Further research is needed to determine the longer-term mental health benefits musically based interventions can offer to youth with disabilities and, more generally, to young children in schools.
This study aimed to explore the association between caregivers’ anxiety and sleep disturbances of preschool children aged from 3 to 6 years in rural areas of Anhui province, China. Besides, we also explored whether there is a mediated effect of resilience on this association. Caregivers of children from 26 kindergartens completed a structured questionnaire, the Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment for Preschoolers, Second Edition (DECA-P2). CSHQ, SAS and DECA-P2 were used to evaluate sleep disturbances among preschool children, the caregivers’ anxiety, and the resilience of preschool children respectively. A total of 3,802 questionnaires were distributed in our investigation, after checking for completeness, 166 invalid questionnaires were excluded and 3,636 questionnaires were eventually included in our study. Binary logistic analysis was utilized to explore the potential relationship between caregivers’ anxiety and sleep disturbances of children. Moderating effect of resilience was evaluated through calculating the percentage of change in odds ratios (OR) in the models with and without resilience. 10% or more of percentage change in OR was defined as a significant mediation effect. In our study, 89.4% of the preschool children aged from 3 to 6 years had potential sleep disturbances. In preschool children whose caregivers are their parents, the correlation between caregivers’ anxiety and sleep disturbances of preschool children is statistically significant (OR=10.168,95%CI:2.506-41.263). In preschool children whose caregivers aren’t their parents, the correlation is also significant (OR=2.405,95%CI:1.139-5.077). Furthermore, resilience could attenuate the association between caregivers’ (including parents and other relatives) anxiety and sleep disturbances amongst preschool children. After adjusting resilience, the association between caregivers’ anxiety and sleep disturbances of preschool children was attenuated and remained significant (OR for parents=9.323,95%CI:2.295-37.875; OR for other caregivers=2.232,95%CI:1.050-4.745). In specific sleep domain of CSHQ, the moderating effect of resilience significantly existed in sleep duration and daytime sleepiness. Our study indicated that caregivers’ anxiety was associated with sleep disturbances among preschool children. High resilient children may be partly protected against the negative effect of caregivers’ anxiety on their sleep quality. Future well-designed cohort studies are needed to further explore this topic in more details.
Context:
Participatory arts-based methods such as photovoice, drama and music have increasingly been used to engage young people who are exposed to psychosocial risks. These methods have the potential to empower youth and provide them with an accessible and welcoming environment to express and manage difficult feelings and experiences. These effects are, however, dependent on the way these methods are implemented and how potential ethical concerns are handled.
Objective:
Using the current literature on arts-based health research as a foundation, this paper examines ethical issues emerging from participatory arts methods with young people with traumatic experiences.
Results:
We present a typology covering relevant issues such as power, accessibility, communication, trust and ownership, across the domains of partnership working, project entry, participation and dissemination. Drawing on our extensive clinical and research experiences, existing research and novel in-practice examples, we offer guidance for ethical dilemmas that might arise at different phases of research.
Conclusion:
Adequate anticipation and consideration of ethical issues, together with the involvement of young people, will help ensure that arts methods are implemented in research and practice with young people in a fair, meaningful and empowering way.
Patient or public contribution:
The issues reviewed are largely based on the authors' experience conducting participatory research. Each of the projects referenced has its own systems for PPI including, variously, consultations with advisory groups, coproduction, youth ambassadors and mentor schemes. One of the coauthors, Josita Kavitha Thirumalai, is a young person trained in peer support and has provided extensive input across all stages.
The first aim of this study is to investigate the role of the EU Blue Card programme implemented in 2012 in Germany. In particular, we aim to explore the impact on the participation in cultural activities of first-generation non-European Union (EU) and non-European Economic Area (EEA) migrants, such as attendance to cinema, concerts and theatre. The second aim is to examine the impact of cultural activities on subjective well-being (SWB), measured by life satisfaction. We compare the cultural participation and life satisfaction between the treatment group that is the non-EU/EEA first-generation immigrants and the control group that consists, not only of natives and second-generation immigrants but also composes of EU/EEA first-generation immigrants who are not eligible to the programme. We will apply a sharp and a fuzzy regression discontinuity design (RDD) within a seemingly unrelated regression equations (SURE) system using the Ordered Probit method. The empirical analysis relies on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) survey over the period 2015–2018. The results show that the treated subjects experience an increase in cultural participation activities and an improvement in their SWB, as a result of the EU Blue Card programme, compared to the control group. Participation in classical music performance, opera or theatre influences more the SWB compared to other cultural activities. Policies that promote labour market integration and participation in cultural activities will enable immigrants to integrate into the social norms of the host societies and improve their SWB.
Netting individuals separated from each other by vast distances; the present condition of COVID-19 needs art and its extraordinary capacity to connect human beings and integrate scientific disciplines. We can predict that the COVID-19 pandemic would leave the mind lonely and vulnerable to diseases, for, on the one hand, the COVID-19 pandemic and related problems, in particular social isolation, are itself stressor. On the other hand, studies confirm the potential of COVID-19 to involve the central nervous system by affecting the immune system, either directly or indirectly. The COVID-19 condition, thus, calls for a necessary compensation of loneliness to reduce the psychological impact of the pandemic. Not only art can fulfill this purpose by meeting social affiliation needs, but also its related creativity is a definite achievement of the performer while acting as a motivation facilitator of creation for the observer. Besides, artworks that illustrate effective hygiene behaviors and physical distancing in an easy-to-understand manner could help health information systems to control the spread of COVID-19. The integration of art with biomedical science applied for simulation of the infected population, lung imaging data, and the viral surface has been useful for prediction of the spread of disease and earlier diagnosis of COVID-19 by imaging techniques and might be a contributor to drug discovery for COVID-19. Also, arts admirably influence the immunoemotional regulatory system so that not only would it enable humanity to tolerate quarantine but also enhance antiviral immunity. More interestingly, the effects of dance have been observed in children, elderly, healthcare workers, and pregnant women, which have been of special attention during the COVID-19 pandemic. In summary, arts provide us powerful tools for tolerating the quarantine time and enhancing the immune system, educating behavioral tips for hygiene practices and physical distancing and in psychosocial care of vulnerable populations during the pandemic.
Internationally, research documents a link between children’s creative engagement in Arts and their experiences of positive wellbeing. Yet this is at odds with both the provision of Arts curricula in England’s education system (which continues to decline including substantial cuts to resources and staff), and longitudinal research reporting a decrease in children’s wellbeing. In this article, the authors present findings from a qualitative study conducted as part of a mixed methods project in a Secondary school in England exploring how performing arts curricula (dance, drama and music: ‘PA’) nurture pupils’ hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing. 11 pupils (aged 11–16) engaged in participatory creative projects as a means of expressing their PA experiences. Their projects served as a springboard for in-depth individual interviews. Thematic analysis revealed that Arts curricula are uniquely need-facilitating environments that nurture pupils’ wellbeing in school. Pupils’ experiences suggest that PA curricula positively impacted their eudaimonic wellbeing, satisfying their innate psychological needs of relatedness, autonomy and competence, as theorised in Self-Determination Theory. Pupils’ experiences also underlined the benefits of Arts engagement for their hedonic wellbeing, including increased positive affect and providing a space for regulating emotions. Collectively, the qualitative and quantitative findings from this mixed methods project suggest some pupils engaged in PA are vulnerable, and Arts play a critical role in facilitating their wellbeing. The positive implications of retaining Arts curricula, versus the potential damage to pupils’ wellbeing and wider engagement with school caused by continuing to devalue Arts, is discussed.
This article reports findings from qualitative case studies of three youth-led community arts hubs, a program that is rooted in, and utilizes a self-determined learning approach. Qualitative case studies of three program sites sought generate meaningful data that could lead to rapid ongoing program development and inform the development and delivery of new program sites. Multiple lines of inquiry were utilized, including observations, and focus groups at all three program sites were designed to gather outcomes and demographic data from participating youth, as well as interviews with program staff. Findings indicate that the program is more successful engaging youth when using primarily self-directed and youth-led approaches to learning and program delivery when compared to adult-driven and more structured activities. The findings of these qualitative case studies also hint at the program having a positive impact on participating youth, helping them build confidence, and strengthening their artisti...
Policy on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in England has undergone radical changes in the last 15 years, with far reaching implications for funding models, access to services and service delivery. Using corpus analysis and critical discourse analysis, we explore how childhood, mental health and CAMHS are constituted in 15 policy documents, 9 pre-2010 and 6 post-2010. We trace how these constructions have changed over time and consider the practice implications of these changes. We identify how children's distress is individualised, through medicalising discourses and shifting understandings of the relationship between socio-economic context and mental health. This is evidenced in a shift from seeing children's mental health challenges as produced by social and economic inequities to a view that children's mental health must be addressed early to prevent future socio-economic burden. We consider the implications of CAMHS policies for the relationship between children, families, mental health services and the state. The article concludes by exploring how concepts of 'parity of esteem' and 'stigma reduction' may inadvertently exacerbate the individualisation of children's mental health.
The review aims to set the scene for the conditions under which social prescribing has arisen and consider the efficacy of different referral options. Its objectives are to provide definitions, models and notable examples of social prescribing schemes and to assess the means by which and the extent to which these schemes have been evaluated. The review makes recommendations for practice, policy and future research.
Introduction Participation in youth arts activities is generally considered 'good' for adolescents' social and emotional wellbeing. Yet much of the literature on this topic comes from a 'big-city' perspective that may not take into account the (at times conservative) social and cultural norms found in regional, rural or remote locations. In 2014 Charles Darwin University and Corrugated Iron Youth Arts joined together to explore if and how participating in youth arts is good for young people in a Northern Territory, and in particular, in a Darwin context. To this end we undertook a qualitative research project, retrospectively exploring 17 participants' stories of participation in performance-based youth arts when they were aged between 12 and 26 years old. Our analysis showed a range of health and wellbeing benefits, particularly in the area of mental health: Participation assisted young people with self-confidence, identity formation and belonging, a sense of themselves as 'creative' people, and emotional development. An overview of these mental health outcomes is the focus of this paper. Here we provide a brief introduction to the literature about the mental health impacts of participation in youth arts activities, with a focus on rural and remote locations. We then introduce Corrugated Iron Youth Arts. Our research findings are presented and then considered in light of the existing literature in order to understand similarities and differences between our Northern Australian and other contexts. Finally, some recommendations are made.
br/>
This article reports research that aimed to identify and evaluate potential resilience benefits of visual arts interventions for young people with complex needs. The study involved a review of the ‘arts for resilience’ literature and a case study of 10 weekly resilience-building arts workshops for 10 young people experiencing mental health complexities and/or learning difficulties.
Findings:
We found a significant existing evidence-base linking visual arts practice to individual and community resilience, across disciplinary fields including art therapy, social work, community health, visual arts practice and geographies of health. Visual art activities were utilised to both educate young people about resilience and enhance young people’s overall resilience. Qualitative research material developed from the case study shows that even short-term visual arts interventions can impact on young people’s resilience – crucially, participation was extremely beneficial to young people’s sense of belonging and ability to cope with difficult feelings (topics which arose repeatedly during interview, focus group discussion and observation).
Applications:
Our review and findings from this small case study provide some initial insights into the resilience benefits of participation in visual arts activities. This, combined with the resilience-based practice framework presented here, could aid the effective targeting of interventions for social workers and others working with young people with complex needs. Alongside this research paper, an arts for resilience practice guide has been produced by the project team (including young people). It contains instructions on how to conduct a range of practical visual arts activities that we identified as being resilience-promoting.
This paper presents the qualitative process findings from an evaluation of a school-based performing arts programme, ‘Rock Challenge’. Rock Challenge aims to promote healthy life styles ‘by building resilience amongst young people involved’. The research aimed to capture the experiences and perceptions of young people’s involvement in the programme, particularly in relation to the concept of the ‘drug-free high’, support offered throughout the programme and participants’ response to Rock Challenge as a drug-prevention initiative. Findings from the study suggest young people felt very positive about their involvement and, in particular, valued the skills and experiences associated with organising a performance, team-working, developing confidence, friendship, fun and excitement. The excitement felt during dance rehearsals and the live performance was associated with the concept of a ‘drug-free high’, feeling good in the absence of drugs and alcohol, and was seen as a key benefit of the programme. While support from teachers and families was perceived as high, difficulties were identified in the recruitment of males and students vulnerable to substance misuse and recommendations are made for improvement. The health promotion opportunities for school nurses and other public health practitioners and personal, social and health education co-ordinators are highlighted.
This longitudinal study draws on positive youth development frameworks and ecological models to examine the role of school-, home- and community-based arts participation in students’ academic (e.g., motivation, engagement) and nonacademic (e.g., self-esteem, life satisfaction) outcomes. The study is based on 643 elementary and high school students from 15 schools conducted over the course of 2 academic years. Structural equation modeling showed that beyond sociodemographics, prior achievement, and prior variance in outcome measures, school predictors of academic and nonacademic outcomes were arts engagement and in-school arts participation; home predictors were parent–child arts interaction and home-based arts resources; and community arts predictors were participation in and attendance at arts events and external arts tuition (the latter, a negative effect). Implications for theory, policy, funding, and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)
Purpose – There is growing interest in the use of music and other arts mediums as a way of addressing mental health and social wellbeing issues in a non-clinical or therapy setting. This can be particularly apt for more at-risk young people who may not engage readily with other approaches. Published evaluation of such interventions is however sparse. This paper aims to describe an evaluation of the DRUMBEAT program which uses drumming as a way to engage at-risk youth, whilst simultaneously incorporating themes relating to mental wellbeing and healthy relationships. Design/methodology/approach – An evaluation was undertaken in 19 schools participating in the ten-week DRUMBEAT program. Pre, interim and post-program surveys were administered to participating students (n ¼ 180). School-based data on student behaviour and teacher feedback was also collected. Findings – Positive changes were observed on several measures, including a 10 per cent increase in self-esteem scores by program completion. School data showed a decrease in reported behaviour incidents for 29 per cent of participants. Overall, the evaluation indicated that the DRUMBEAT program provides a creative medium for working with at-risk young people and helps develop self-esteem and social relationship skills. Originality/value – There is a paucity of published evaluations of interventions of this kind. Also novel is the delivery of the program in a school-based rather than clinical therapy setting. The paper also demonstrates how a "real world" intervention program can go beyond basic process evaluation to collect outcome data that helps build the evidence base for mental health promotion.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine characteristics of resilience among Australian adolescents, the extent to which resilience might be strengthened through participation in a dance/drama competition, the Rock Eisteddfod Challenge (REC), and the impact participation may have on health related behaviour.
Design/methodology/approach
Students completed questionnaires at the commencement of the REC planning and rehearsals in schools. The survey was repeated immediately after completion of the competition. Three groups of students were compared comprised students engaged in the REC (participants), students from Rock Eisteddfod schools who did not participate in the Rock Eisteddfod Challenge (REC school non‐participants) and students from schools that did not participate in the Rock Eisteddfod Challenge (control school students). The questionnaire was designed to measure changes to key modifiable elements of resiliency and selected health behaviours.
Findings
The majority of participants in the REC were girls, and the analysis of results was restricted to a matched group of girls from Year 9 (age 13‐14) and above. Girls in this group from REC schools scored significantly higher in measures of overall resiliency during the rehearsal period than students from control schools. Within REC schools, participants scored higher for a combined measure of resiliency than non‐participants. High scores for resiliency were consistently associated with lower prevalence of reported substance misuse across the whole sample. In general, increases in substance use observed over the time period from baseline to follow up was less in the REC group than the control group.
Research limitations/implications
Several methodological problems were encountered in this study, including identification of adequate measures of personal skills and characteristics, difficulty in obtaining a true pre‐intervention point to commence the study; and in identifying a large balanced sample of students that would allow for meaningful analysis of results; as well as the normal difficulties of identifying and maintaining contact with a large cohort of students in many different sites. For these reasons, the results need to be treated cautiously, and “causal” conclusions about the intervention could only be preliminary.
Practical implications
The study indicates the potential benefits of participation in programmes like the REC, and the results are consistent with other studies indicating positive associations between participation in the REC and a range of positive personal, social and behavioural outcomes.
Originality/value
The paper highlights some of the methodological challenges in conducting a prospective assessment of the effects of participation in a health oriented dance/drama event. It indicates the potential of this type of activity as a vehicle for the communication of health messages, and the possibility of a more direct influence on personal skills and health related behaviour.
The arts are valued by most societies for a variety of reasons. From a health perspective they have been valued primarily for therapeutic purposes. Subsequently, the benefit of the arts in health research is increasingly evident. Although the arts have been used as a research method in other disciplines, their use in health is much more recent. There is no clear understanding of the kind of arts or the way the arts have been used as a research method.This systematic review of the literature was conducted to fill this knowledge gap. We undertook the review to determine what constitutes arts-based methods in health research and how have these methods been used.We searched eight databases using different combinations of several keywords. We used content and thematic analysis to analyze our results.Thirty studies met our criteria for inclusion. Visual arts were the most common, followed by performance arts, and literary arts. The purposes of using arts in health research were primarily for knowledge production and knowledge translation.Artistic methods are a useful technique for both knowledge production and translation purposes, albeit to a limited degree. We will discuss our findings in terms of trends, methodological issues and theoretical issues. Further research is needed to advance this area of knowledge.
This article reports a systematic review of literature published between 1994 and 2004 on the effects of performing arts for health in young people aged 11-18. The review includes research on music, performance, drama and dance in community settings and non-curricular mainstream education. A total of 17 electronic databases were searched and 3670 papers identified, 104 of which met relevance criteria. Full text scrutiny of 85 papers was undertaken and 14 of these were identified for review. The research was heterogeneous, making overall synthesis of results inappropriate. The review demonstrates that research on the impact of the performing arts on young people is at a relatively early stage.
Such diverse thinkers as Lao-Tze, Confucius, and U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld have all pointed out that we need to be able to tell the difference between real and assumed knowledge. The systematic review is a scientific tool that can help with this difficult task. It can help, for example, with appraising, summarising, and communicating the results and implications of otherwise unmanageable quantities of data. This book, written by two highly-respected social scientists, provides an overview of systematic literature review methods: Outlining the rationale and methods of systematic reviews; Giving worked examples from social science and other fields; Applying the practice to all social science disciplines; It requires no previous knowledge, but takes the reader through the process stage by stage; Drawing on examples from such diverse fields as psychology, criminology, education, transport, social welfare, public health, and housing and urban policy, among others. Including detailed sections on assessing the quality of both quantitative, and qualitative research; searching for evidence in the social sciences; meta-analytic and other methods of evidence synthesis; publication bias; heterogeneity; and approaches to dissemination.
Purpose
– This paper aims to explore the role of drama and theatre in promoting the emotional and social wellbeing of a group of young Black men living in south London.
Design/methodology/approach
– A qualitative methodology was used in a process and outcome evaluation of a drama‐based initiative that aimed to promote young Black men's sexual and emotional health.
Findings
– The research found that this community‐based initiative was able to promote young people's self‐esteem and a positive sense of agency. This was achieved by creating opportunities for self‐expression, reflection and self‐understanding, and through the development of relationships between participants characterised by trust and reciprocity.
Originality/value
– The evaluation points to the strengths of youth and community work and arts‐based approaches in engaging young people around health issues and in promoting emotional wellbeing and a positive sense of identity among young people. The evaluation also highlights the usefulness of process‐oriented qualitative evaluation as an appropriate way of evaluating and contributing to the ongoing development of initiatives that aim to use the arts in healthcare settings.
Noting that the protective factors that support positive development despite adversity are becoming better understood, this workbook discusses the importance of encouraging resilience and promoting prosocial behavior in adolescents living in challenging circumstances and shows how to evaluate resilience through the use of checklists and background information. The workbook, one of a series focusing on resilience in preschoolers, school-aged children, and adolescents, also provides information to assist in planning intervention strategies. The workbook's introduction describes the domains of resilience, summarizes factors associated with resilience during adolescence, and contains an assessment and intervention chart. The workbook is then organized into two parts. Part 1 presents background information and assessment checklists for adolescents and for parents/caregivers in the following areas: (1) secure base; (2) education; (3) friendships; (4) talents and interests, including self-esteem; (5) positive values, including moral reasoning and empathy; and (6) social competencies, including locus of control. Part 2 outlines principles to underpin the planning of intervention strategies in each area and describes techniques for engaging and supporting youth who may have social or family problems. This section also features two case studies that illustrate how information on an adolescent's vulnerabilities and resilience and protective factors are used to design appropriate interventions. A description of Kohlberg's stages of moral development and assessment method is appended. (Contains a 71-item bibliography.) (KB)
Aims:
Health-promoting strategies need to be culturally appropriate to encourage healthy behaviours and lifestyle choices in children and young people. This rapid review explores the effects of participating in creative activities on the health and well-being of children aged between 11 and 18 years.
Methods:
Building on an earlier systematic review undertaken by Daykin and colleagues(1) a rapid review of the literature published between 2004 and 2011 was undertaken. The search was conducted systematically and included research on music, dance, singing, drama and visual arts, taking place in community settings or as extracurricular activities in mainstream schools. Therapies such as art, drama and music were excluded from the review.
Results:
Following rigorous application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, 20 papers were included in the review: six quantitative, eight qualitative and six mixed-method approaches. The interventions used in the studies were diverse and the research was heterogeneous, therefore overall synthesis of the results was inappropriate. The review is therefore organised into the following headings: sexual health, obesity, mental health and emotional well-being. Despite the methodological weakness and limitations of the majority of the studies there were some consistencies in their findings. It was found that participating in creative activities can have a positive effect on behavioural changes, self-confidence, self-esteem, levels of knowledge and physical activity.
Conclusions:
Although the research evidence is generally weak there is some evidence that using creative activities as part of a health-promoting strategy may be a useful method of increasing knowledge and positive behaviours in children and young people.
This article reports on a multi-method evaluation of a national arts program conducted over 3years in five sites across Canada. Statistical analysis involve growth curve modeling of five waves of data and interviews with participating youth and parents. The results indicate that high-quality arts programs have a significant effect on children’s in-program behavior and emotional problems. The findings from the qualitative interviews suggest that active recruitment, removing barriers to participation, and high parental involvement enhanced youth engagement. Perceived youth gains included increased confidence, enhanced art skills, improved prosocial skills, and improved conflict resolution skills.
Adolescent Health: Understanding and Preventing Risk Behaviours
- R Diclemente
- J Santelli
- R Crosby
DiClemente R, Santelli J, Crosby R. Adolescent
Health: Understanding and Preventing Risk
Behaviours. Hoboken, NJ: Jossey-Bass, 2009,
p. 54.
Fair Society, Healthy Lives: Strategic Review of Health Inequalities in England Post-2010. London: The Marmot Review Google Scholar
- Marmot M.
Report on the Children and Young People Health Outcomes Forum. Children and Young people's Health Outcomes Strategy
- I Lewis
Lewis I. Report on the Children and Young
People Health Outcomes Forum. Children and
Young people's Health Outcomes Strategy,
2012. London: Department of Health.
REVIEW PAPER
Healthy Lives: Strategic Review of Health Inequalities in England Post-2010. London: The Marmot Review
- M Marmot
- Fair
- Society
Marmot M. Fair Society, Healthy Lives:
Strategic Review of Health Inequalities in
England Post-2010. London: The Marmot
Review, 2010.
Social Prescribing: A Review of
- L J Thomson
- P M Camic
- H J Chatterjee
Thomson LJ, Camic PM, Chatterjee HJ. Social
Prescribing: A Review of Community Referral
Schemes. London: University College London,
2015.
Our Health Our Care Our Say. London: Department of Health
- Department
- Health
Arts for Health and Wellbeing: An Evaluation Framework
- Public Health England
Public Health England. Arts for Health and
Wellbeing: An Evaluation Framework. London:
Public Health England, 2016.
Getting It Right for Children and Young People: Overcoming Cultural Barriers in the NHS so as to Meet Their Needs. London: Department of Health
- Department
- Health
Department of Health. Getting It Right for
Children and Young People: Overcoming
Cultural Barriers in the NHS so as to Meet
Their Needs. London: Department of Health,
2010.
Future in Mind: Promoting, Protecting and Improving Our Children and Young People's Mental Health and Wellbeing. London: Department of Health
- Department
- Health
Department of Health. Future in Mind:
Promoting, Protecting and Improving Our
Children and Young People's Mental Health
and Wellbeing. London: Department of Health,
2015.
Systematic Reviews in the Social Sciences: A practical Guide
- M Pettigrew
- H Roberts
Pettigrew M, Roberts H. Systematic Reviews in
the Social Sciences: A practical Guide. Oxford:
Blackwell Publishing, 2006.
Mental Health of Children and Young People in Great Britain
- H Green
- A Mcginnity
- H Meltzer
Green H, McGinnity A, Meltzer H et al. Mental
Health of Children and Young People in Great
Britain 2004. London: Palgrave Macmillan,
2005.
Lightning review: Access to child and adolescent mental health services
- Commissioner
- England
Office of the Children's Commissioner for
England. Lightning review: Access to child and
adolescent mental health services. Available
online at: http://www.childrenscommissioner.
gov.uk/sites/default/files/publications/
Children%27s%20Commissioner%27s%20
Mental%20Health%20Lightning%20Review.
pdf (2016, Last accessed 23 rd July 2016).