King's College London-- Scott
21 July 2022

Thirty senior representatives from Greater London Authority, local authorities, and arts organisations were consulted for the ‘Artists’ Workspace consultation report’ by Dr Scott. Some big challenges for providing affordable artist workspaces were identified, which included building stronger connections with the local communities that studios locate in. The report provides valuable insights for stakeholders to achieve the aim of securing affordable artist workspaces in London.

University College London-- Iob et al.
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2200816119
18 July 2022

Data from 5,146 adults between the ages of 52 and 74 were collected to analyse the immediate and long-run effects of Covid-19 on aspects such as mental health and wellbeing. The results demonstrated that between June and July 2020, 49% of older adults with a potential Covid-19 infection had clinically significant depressive symptoms, compared with 22% of those without infection. This finding suggest the long-lasting psychological impact of Covid-19 and provided implications for policymakers to pay extra attention to vulnerable groups.

University of Colorado School of Medicine-- Moss et al/
DOI: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2022.04.016
28 June 2022

This study carried out a randomised control trial (RCT) to examine the feasibility, acceptability and effectiveness of Creative Arts Therapy (CAT) in improving the mental health of health care professionals under Covid-19 workload. Researchers obtained a low drop-out rate and high satisfaction with this 12-week art therapy programme. Compared to controls, participants in the therapy group also had significantly greater improvement in anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), burnout symptoms, and turnover intentions. However, it is worth noting that the majority of participants were (well-educated) young-to-middle-age, white females, which pointed toward the lack of generalisability of current findings.

Rhodes University-- Mitchell & Meehan
05 May 2022

Through analyzing the interviews and artworks of 15 Schizophrenic patients in South Africa, the study aimed to examine how art-making could help schizophrenia. Drawing on qualitative and phenomenological approaches, the study finds that art-making helps patients feel at ease and develop "a sense of home". Furthermore, art-making is also used as a way for patients to reflect on their perception of themselves and the world. The study concludes that art creation could help patients with their mental disorders as it enables them to reconnect with the world through self-reflection.

University of Sydney- Irwin et al.
DOI: 10.1080/00050067.2022.2061329
10 April 2022 (Article)

The aim of the study was to determine how a gallery-based arts engagement program would influence individuals suffering from depression. According to the study, 32 participants were randomly assigned to two terms of the program and stated that the program helped them feel more included and that it had an overall positive impact on their sense of identity. Moreover, the program also managed to counteract negative cognitive, emotional, and behavioural patterns. Therefore, results show that community-based, non–clinical art programs may act not only as a destigmatizing agent but also promote recovery from depression.

UCL- Bone et al.
DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/v2f6p
23 March 2022 (Article)

Recent research analysed the longitudinal data from two US-based studies, the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health and the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988, and observed that involvement in art activities predicted higher self-control scores and lower engagement in anti-social behaviour, e.g., misbehaving at school. It is worth noting that only a correlational relationship was found. More evidence is required to demonstrate the casual effects of art activities.

King's College London-- Williams & Tembo
20 July 2022

The Utopic Now! project, launched in 2019, has enabled young people in London to explore their hopes and fears in life via plays about the future guided by a multidisciplinary team of experts. The Covid pandemic led to a parallel project named Dystopia Now!-- a project offering young people a chance to share their experience during the pandemic in a virtual format (Minecraft). Both projects are included in the book, COVID-19 and Co-production in Health and Social Care Research, Policy, and Practice (Volume 2).

University College London-- Lawn et al.
DOI: 10.1177/02698811221108956
1 July 2022

The findings suggested that adolescents who consume cannabis have no difference in the risk of having higher levels of subclinical depression or anxiety, compared to adults who use cannabis, nor were they more vulnerable than adult users to the associations with psychotic-like symptoms. However, another finding is that adolescents might be more vulnerable to cannabis addiction due to factors such as an increased disruption to relationships with others.

Griffith University-- Sunderland et al.
16 May 2022

Upon reviewing and consolidating the findings of 19 research articles, the study offers comprehensive guidance on how art practices should develop trauma awareness to prevent retraumatization and soothe the process of healing. The study also concludes that art practices could be helpful in coping with traumas, further evidencing how the arts could serve as a way of trauma healing.

UCL- Collins et al.
DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/fs23c
25 April 2022 (Article)

Researchers used a literature review of studies published from 2000 to 2021, as well as a manual search of reference lists of arts and mental health journals, to find out if there is a connection between arts-based groups and the well-being of women who have experienced gender-based violence. The results indicate that supportive art groups tailored to the needs of the survivors have a positive impact on the women involved, leading the researchers to advocate for the necessity of arts and health disciplines working together to address important issues, like this one.

Copenhagen Research Center for Mental Health- Mundy et al.
DOI: 10.18261/njach.4.1.1
05 April 2022 (Article)

Aiming to gain an overview of current evidence of group-based creative writing interventions on mental health recovery, researchers conducted a systematic review of literature, assessing 7743 records. The results suggest that creative writing may support mental health clinical and personal recovery by encouraging connectedness, empowerment, and identity.

University of Vienna- Anja C. Feneberga et al.
DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/93cfa
28 February 2022 (Article)

Researchers examined the relationship between music-listening behaviour and measures of stress as well as moods among 711 adults in Austria during the pandemic. The findings suggest that listening to music is associated with reduced perceived stress and better mood. Also, interaction is found between their music choice and emotions, highlighting the importance of music-listening during mental crises.