Approaches to research in art therapy

In this chapter, we provided an overview of approaches to research in art therapy in the past, present, and future. Over the past decades since the discipline was established, the conceptualization of art therapy research has expanded from descriptive case studies to empirical studies, arts-based knowledge, and community-based research (Kaimal, 2017). In this chapter, we included an overview of current research in art therapy while addressing challenges of conducting research in the discipline, including limited funding and research capacity, small sample sizes, and inclusion of artwork as data. Topics we covered in this chapter include most commonly used and accepted research designs (quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, arts-based approaches, and program evaluation), how research can be used to improve clinical practice, tools to evaluate research quality, the importance of participatory and community-based research, and ethical issues when conducting art therapy research. We also included a section on implications and future directions, as well as art experientials and reflective questions to review and further consider the materials.