Fourteenth International Conference on the Arts in Society

Abstract

Low-income women face a multitude of stressors, but traditional psychotherapy does not always meet their needs (Goodman et.al, 2010). Healing art processes can be a viable therapeutic alternative, as a vehicle for both healing and community building. Community-based therapeutic art groups can produce social change by providing opportunities for marginalized communities to name and understand their realities, identify their needs and strengths, and transform their lives in ways that contribute to individual and collective well-being and justice (Willis & Rauch, 2014). This poster reviews data collected from The Women Healing and Thriving Community Arts Group program. The program was a pilot ten-session healing arts group for women from low-income backgrounds in Boston focused on self-exploration and empowerment. The program offered a facilitated opportunity for low-income women to explore a variety of artistic media, share their challenges and life stories in a safe, caring environment, and engage in both individual and collaborative art processes. The study detailed in the proposed poster examined experiences of nine women in the healing arts group across multiple sessions. Data included participatory observations, interviews, and focus groups. Qualitative inductive thematic data analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) revealed four overarching domains: 1) psychological realities and challenges faced by the women prior to and during the group; 2) healing processes that took place within the group; 3) self-identified internal processes and shifts that took place within the women; and 4) participant’s takeaways and personal revelations. Finally, implications and future directions for group-based healing arts will be discussed.