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Art Therapy With Serious Juvenile Offenders: A Phenomenological Analysis
Roy W. Persons*
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: discoveryroy{at}aol.com.
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Abstract |
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Forty-six seriously delinquent, incarcerated boys received individual and group therapy for 32 months. The study examined how art therapy addressed the boys’ psychological needs via analysis of the boys’ self-selected art productions. In descending order of frequency, the eight most frequent need themes were identity issues; need for security and tranquility; need for freedom, adventure, and fun; need for ideal parental relationships; need for affiliation and affection; erotic and sexual needs; expression of depression, childhood trauma, and other psychological problems; and religious or spiritual needs. The boys’ perceptions of what was most helpful about art therapy in descending order were stress relief and relaxation, reduction of boredom, pride and self-confidence, positive recognition, working through frustration, enjoyment and fun, improvement of ability to concentrate, and the way they were treated. Three brief case histories and a description of the art therapy procedures are given. Possible implications for cognitive restructuring are discussed.
First published on August 4, 2008, doi:10.1177/0306624X08320208
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology 2009;53:433.
A more recent version of this article appeared on August 1, 2009
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