Heritage art practices include indigenous and traditional arts practices — such as fiber arts, clay work, distinct painting styles etc. — handed down in families or communities across generations. The fact that they have been sustained for generations, and helped to serve the expressive and psychosocial needs of communities, suggest that they could be ideal approaches to support mental health and emotional well-being. To better understand their potential therapeutic benefits, researchers from Drexel University's College of Nursing and Health Professions examined the impact of these practices on mental and physical health.
Led by Girija Kaimal, EdD, professor in the College of Nursing and Health Professions, the study showed that heritage artforms can improve mood and reduce anxiety. Results were recently published in The Arts in Psychotherapy .
"When we engage in preferred heritage artforms, they can help us manage our moods including reducing negativity, improving positive feelings and reducing feelings of anxiety," said Kaimal. "Most heritage artforms are typically simple in basic techniques, making them easy to learn, but then allow for refinement, artistic exploration and complexity. We don't need advanced skills or supplies. Simple creative practices can serve as preventive mental health resources."
Kaimal explained that in previous studies they have highlighted how to distinguish between indigenous and traditional arts practices. Indigenous art practices relate to a specific community in geographical region. They include sacred belief systems, spirituality and community history that tend to be more specific in their applications. In undertaking these practices, individuals need to be respectful of the community's guidance around using imagery, including being mindful about harmful appropriation. Traditional creative practices are those that are handed down across generations and are more open to adaptation and interpretation.
In this current study, the research team collected data from sites in the United States, Japan and India. Fifty-four participants completed two sessions: one where they engaged in a preferred heritage art practice for 45 minutes and one where they put together jigsaw puzzles for 45 minutes.
In the U.S., participants could practice activities like creating temporary body art with natural henna; or cross-stitch, the embroidering of patterns. In Japan, participants engaged in creating works using approaches like mizuhiki, tying decorative knots with thin paper strings, or calligraphy. In India, participants engaged in pookalam, creating artworks using natural media, like plants, flowers and clay, as well as using a range of heritage arts practices, such as madhubani, a style of painting.
All participants completed standardized questionnaires before and after both sessions to measure anxiety, mood and affect, perceived stress, self-efficacy and creative agency. Participants reported more positive feelings and less negative feelings after the heritage art task compared to the puzzle task, showing that practicing heritage artforms can have significant mental health benefits.
"The findings highlight the value of tapping into tools we have right in our homes," said Kaimal. "There is a reason these practices have survived over time. The acts of using our hands and eyes to create something is rewarding and calming on multiple levels both physiological and emotional."
Kaimal and the research team are planning to build on this study by examining a wide range of heritage practices at sites around the world. Further analysis of qualitative data from all of the sites is also underway. Additionally, the researchers are developing an open-access book as a resource for psychosocial support specialists and art therapists.
"We see tremendous potential for indigenous arts practices to be a public health approach for mental health and well-being," said Kaimal. "Heritage arts practices are often ignored or treated as artifacts alone. They can, however, be integrated into our lives as we were meant to use them in our evolutionary history: as a creative resource for self-regulation and well-being."
Read the full study here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0197455625000243 .
