Date of Award
Spring 5-18-2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
MA - Master of Arts
Department
Expressive Therapies
Advisor
Raquel C. Stephenson
Abstract
The goal of this thesis was to understand why art therapists are particularly at risk for burnout, why it is essential for art therapists to engage artmaking for their own self-care, and why fiber crafts are particularly suited for self-care. The literature was collected and organized using reflective journaling and visual–tactile coding and then presented in the following review. The first two sections of the literature review include comprehensive definitions of burnout and self-care and how both concepts have been discussed in literature relating to the helping professions and specifically art therapists. The third section covers the historical context of the art–craft divide, details the healing nature of fiber, and includes examples of how fiber arts are already being used by art therapists in their practices. The primary finding that connects the literature was that engagement is the antipode of burnout, and the subthemes of engaging in community, engaging the moment, and engaging with self are explored in the discussion.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Chippero, Elaine, "One Stitch at a Time: Examining the Self-Care of Art Therapists and the Potential of Fiber Arts for Wellbeing" (2024). Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses. 812.
https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/expressive_theses/812
Rights
The author owns the copyright to this work.
