Using the Arts in Social Work Intervention

by Brad Forenza, MSW, PhD, and Betsy Eckhardt, MSW, LSW

     In 1993, October was established as National Arts and Humanities Month in the United States, with a goal of empowering more individuals and communities to participate in the arts. Theater arts have long been praised for the benefits they can provide to participants. Among those benefits are the enhancement of communication skills, social interactions, physical fitness, and empathy. Less commonly praised, however, are the therapeutic benefits resulting from such participation. In fact, theater participation - vis a via civic engagement - can be a powerful medium that all social workers, community organizers, and mental health professionals reconsider during National Arts and Humanities Month.

     Participatory arts programs, such as interactive theater, are an effective method for psychoeducation and improving social problems (Fredland, 2010; Keller, Austin & McNeill, 2017)). Interactive theater was developed based on the work of a Brazilian drama theorist named Augusto Boal, who was responsible for popularizing “Theater of the Oppressed” (Fredland, 2010). Boal, inspired by Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, developed interactive theater techniques to present social problems, or stressful interpersonal situations, then held a dialogue with audiences to identify desirable outcomes or solutions (Fredland, 2010). This interactive theater technique is actively used to discuss healthy middle school-aged peer relationships, to mediate the risk of suicide, and so forth (Fredland, 2010; Keller, Austin & McNeill, 2017). In fact, Let’s Talk, a Montana-based interactive theater intervention, allowed participants to write, then perform, original productions about suicidality and disclosure; afterwards, a licensed therapist facilitated an audience discussion (Keller, Austin, & McNeill, 2017).

    Additionally, theater interventions improve well-being, self development, and social engagement. This is especially valuable for aging populations and older adults, who are at risk of social isolation, depression, and loss of functioning. Theater participation is associated with improved outcomes in cognitive, physiological, and psychological realms for adults aged 60 and older. Notably, theater-based interventions are particularly attractive because participation is restricted neither by special equipment nor by prior training, as opposed to other art forms, such as playing a musical instrument or painting (Noice, Noice, & Kramer, 2015). Creative arts therapies are also credited with developing cultural and interpersonal aspects of the self and allowing participants to foster a sense of generativity (Dunphy, et al., 2019). In sum, these types of interventions create physical, social, intra-personal, and cognitive change for participating individuals (Dunphy, et al., 2019).  

     These examples are but a small illustration of the modalities of interventions available. Drama-based interventions are used to treat grief and substance use recovery, to engage youth in juvenile probation programs, and to combat poverty (Fullchange & Sharkey, 2018; Gallagher & Service, 2010; Levac, McLean, Wright, & Bell, 1998; Wamuth, et al., 2018), on individual, community, and societal levels. To the extent that creative arts interventions can facilitate positive change, community growth, and self-improvement, it is wise for our profession to think creatively and re-reconsider the role that the arts can play in our everyday practices.

References

Dunphy, K., Baker, F. A., Dumaresq, E., Carroll-Haskins, K., Eickholt, J., Ercole, M., Kaimal, G., Meyer, K., Sajnani, N., Shamir, O. Y., & Wosch, T. (2019). Creative arts interventions to address depression in older adults: A systematic review of outcomes, processes, and mechanisms. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi-org.ezproxy.montclair.edu/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02655

Gallagher, K., & Service, I. (2010). Applied theatre at the heart of educational reform: An impact and sustainability analysis. Research in Drama Education, 15(2), 235–253.

Fredland, N. M. (2010). Nurturing healthy relationships through a community-based interactive theater program. Journal of Community Health Nursing, 27(2), 107–118. https://doi-org.ezproxy.montclair.edu/10.1080/07370011003705013

Fullchange, A., & Sharkey, J. D. (2018).  Experience and outcomes of a theatre intervention for youth on probation and their university peers.  Applied Psychology in Criminal Justice, 14(1), 71-85.

Levac, A. M., McLean, S., Wright, L. M., & Bell, J. M. (1998). A "reader's theater" intervention to managing grief: Posttherapy reflections by a family and clinical team. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 24(1), 81–93. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1998.tb01064.x

Keller, S. N., Austin, C. G., & McNeill, V. (2017). A theater intervention to promote communication and disclosure of suicidal ideation. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 45(3), 294–312. https://doi-org.ezproxy.montclair.edu/10.1080/00909882.2017.1320569

Noice, T., Noice, H., & Kramer, A. F. (2015). Theatre arts for improving cognitive and affective health. Activities, Adaptation & Aging, 39(1), 19–31. https://doi-org.ezproxy.montclair.edu/10.1080/01924788.2015.994440

Wasmuth, S., Thomas, M., Hackman, H., Clingan, D., Hecht, J., & Adney, A. (2018).  Occupation-based theater intervention for individuals with substance use disorder.  American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 72, 1.  

Brad Forenza, MSW, PhD, is an associate professor at Montclair State University and a recognized scholar of social policy. His research foci pertain to youth development, primary prevention, and civic engagement. His academic career is accentuated by direct social work practice at youth and family development agencies, program evaluation for clients in the human services, and public policy analysis at the state and federal levels. He regularly publishes and presents his work in national and international forums. His original, public scholarship also extends to the organization of practice-oriented events and panels, the production of documentary film and a social welfare podcast, and the authorship of practitioner interviews and many policy speeches.

Betsy Eckhardt, MSW, LSW, is a graduate of Montclair State University's Master of Social Work program.