Art Therapy and the Brain.

Psychology to me is like a family tree. You can map out each place of every relative, although you can stumble when trying to map out your ancestors further back the timeline, and when you find something new it throws you off track. As I'm getting into my research I've noticed that there is much more to the brain than I thought and that's when I get thrown off track. I'm learning about different mental illnesses and what causes each of them. I find it fascinating how much there is to know about people, how their mental state is, and what they might go through on a daily basis. Since my topic is about how art therapy can affect the brain I thought it would be an excellent idea to jot down some facts about the brain, before I go into detail about how they are treated.

The attachment theory is very well known in Psychotherapy and brain development. While growing and maturing into an adult every different region of the brain develops as well. The brain also contains social organs. Back in 1976 2 researchers named Kling and Steklic found that different regions of the brain contain the lack of social behavior and loneliness (The Neuroscience of Human Relationships : Attachment and the Developing Social Brain. Louis Cozolin). The brains frontal lobe impacts social skills, behind the frontal lobe is the theory of mind. If not attached properly the brain lacks social skills, concluding sadness and loneliness. This is called the attachment theory.

What is ToM (theory of mind)?

Just like the name suggests, 'Theory of Mind' is a theory. ToM is part of the cognitive capacity of the brain. Other names for this ToM capacity include; commonsense psychology, naive psychology, folk psychology, mind reading, and mentalizing. Theory of mind is the ability to attribute other peoples mental states, beliefs, desire, knowledge, and intents. Some people don't have a sense of ToM and develop other mental disorders. The most common condition is ADD and ADHD, which are treated differently depending on the individual. ToM is tested quite often, using a 'False Belief Test', this video is a well addressed definition of ToM. There is also ToMM which is another form of ToM. ToMM stands for 'Theory of Mind Mechanism', which is one of the highly discussed modules postulated by the theory. I do not know much about ToMM although I am currently learning more about it.

Some side effects of ToM can result in many different life-long disorders. ADD and ADHD are some of the most common brain disorders. Even though they are very similar they have a huge distinct. ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) is caused by the dopamine levels in the brain. If the brain produces low levels of dopamine, it causes us to lose focus easily making it difficult to stay calm. ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) has the same effects although the individual's brain has the regular amount of dopamine in the brain. People with ADD and ADHD are huge contributors to the use of art therapy.

A famous method of art therapy among any individual is the tree drawing exercise. The client is asked to draw themselves as a tree usually on the first session. The therapist's job on the first meeting is to create a strong rapport between themselves and the client. The therapist can tell by the outcome of the drawing how the client is feeling and the purpose of them being there. For example, if the client draws a hole in the center of the tree it usually means that they feel empty inside. The therapist then knows that the client is there for a lack of a social/family life. etc.

Simply, there are 2 basic ways for a therapist to approach there client. Edith Kramer was the first person to champion the thought of being 'process intensive'. She was concerned with artistic quality, and development. She treasured the healing qualities of art as well. The process intensive approach is used to help the client learn something about him/her self.  Kramer is known as a social realistic painter, she is a follower of a psychoanalytic theory as well as a fore mother of art therapy.

"Art is used as a catharsis, an emotional journey to which self-actualization and discovery are the end result."  - Malacaster.EDU

The other way to approach a client is for both the client and therapist to not be concerned with the outcome of the art, but rather being able to see the way that the client is consciously or unconsciously expressing themselves. Margaret Naumberg thought that this was the best way to approach a client in their journey through art therapy. Naumberg is a famous art therapist, and one of the first people to succeed in art therapy. She also founded the Walden school of New York city, and named her approach the 'dynamically oriented art therapy'.

I've already read several articles, and chapters in books, and I feel as if I need to step back and focus more on art therapy as a whole. I've learned so much about the brain and how people view the world, the different disguises that people create, and how we can read others mind's on a daily basis, but I haven't read about art therapy as much as I plan too. Now that I know more about neuroscience I am now starting to research about the ways that art therapists can treat the individuals needs. I'm really enjoying my topic, and just hope that I can re-create some of the readings that I've read into an interesting blog.

Citations:

Art Therapy Exercises To Try at Home | World of Psychology." Psych Central.com. Physch Central, 1995-2013. Web. 15 July 2013.

This website is an advanced blogging site that people subscribe too for information. I haven't gotten too deep into the cite yet, but it does outline disorders of the brain. How they are caused and how to treat the disorder.

Bach, Matt, Peter Loken, Amy Voytilla, and Sivika Sirisanthana. "Art Therapy." Art Therapy. Malacaster, n.d. Web. 15 July 2013. This was by far the most useful website created by students, it breifly explained art therapy as a whole and was very useful. I learned about the approaches of art therapy and gained a lot of useful knowledge from this site. 

Cozolino, Louis J. The Neuroscience of Human Relationships: Attachment and the Developing Social Brain. New York: Norton, 2006. Print.

            This book was really helpful on researching about the brain itself. I maintained a lot information on therapy as well as learning about disorders in the brain. Very helpful and was surprisingly fun to read

Caldwell, Lore. "Welcome to Growing Up Easier Publishing." Help Children Overcome Problems Such as Abuse, Learning Problems, Autism and More, Growing Up Easier. Growing up Easier, 2008. Web. 02 July 2013.
Edith Kramer." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 07 Sept. 2013. Web. 15 July 2013.

Goldman, Alvin I. "Theory of Mind." Oxford Handbook of Philosophy and Cognitive Science. N.p.: n.p., 2012. 1-25. Print.

Hansard, Glen. "Art Therapy: A Documentary." YouTube. YouTube, 08 Oct. 2012. Web. 02 July 2013. This YouTube documentary displayed a handful of students who talked about their journey through art therapy. I also got to learn a bit about the brain. This documentary is also what led me to the fabulous book by Louis Cozolin
Margaret Naumburg." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 07 Sept. 2013. Web. 15 July 2013.
Mindblindness." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 24 June 2013. Web. 15 July 2013.

RESEARCH INTO THEORY OF MIND." Autism, PDD-NOS & Asperger's Fact Sheets. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 July 2013.

Theory of Mind-Robert Seyfarth." YouTube. YouTube, 19 June 2010. Web. 10 July 2013.

Theory of Mind." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 07 Sept. 2013. Web. 15 July 2013.