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A systematic literature review of the impact of art therapy upon post-traumatic stress disorder

ABSTRACT Background A case is made for art therapy and its contributions to the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Aims The current systematic literature review set out to critically review existing evidence of the impact of art therapy upon adults with a diagnosis of PTSD. Five online databases were searched for articles published in peer-reviewed journals exploring the effectiveness of art therapy in the treatment of PTSD. Results The search yielded 449 papers. Following application of exclusion criteria 20 were included in the systematic review. Conclusions Across the reviewed articles, four themes were identified: (1) impact on symptoms, (2) processing traumatic memories, (3) fostering a holistic view of self, and (4) increased well-being and more positive view of self. Overall methodological considerations included issues regarding study design, measures and analysis, researcher biases, sample size, and treatment received. Implications Evidence suggested that some can benefit from the treatment with effects being shown in most symptom clusters of PTSD. Implications such as the need for more robust research in the field are discussed. Clinical recommendations include the suggestion to use art therapy when avoidance or feelings of guilt/shame make engaging in standard talking therapies difficult. Plain-language summary Art therapy has a long history in the work with trauma-related difficulties including post-traumatic stress disorder. The current literature review is the largest of its kind summarising 20 research papers on the impact of visual art therapy with adult trauma survivors. Themes identified across papers pertained to the impact on symptoms, processing traumatic memories, fostering holistic view of self, and increased well-being/improved self-image. The review showed that some can benefit from art therapy for PTSD with effects shown in most symptom clusters. However, the quality of reviewed articles was poor and the current paper makes recommendations for more rigorously designed research.