Proceedings of the 1st Tarumanagara International Conference on Medicine and Health (TICMIH 2021)

The Use of Art Therapy in the Treatment of Eating Disorders: A Systematic Review

Authors
Zaida M. Prijatna1, Monty P. Satiadarma2, Linda Wati3, *
1Undergraduate Psychology Program, Tarumanagara University
2Faculty of Psychology, Tarumanagara University
3Faculty of Psychology, Tarumanagara University
*Corresponding author. Email: lindaw@fpsi.untar.ac.id
Corresponding Author
Linda Wati
Available Online 1 December 2021.
DOI
10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.020How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Art therapy; Eating disorder; Anorexia nervosa; Bulimia nervosa; Binge-eating disorder
Abstract

One of the characteristics of individuals with eating disorders is the inability to express themselves verbally. Hence, art therapy is particularly effective for individuals with this disorder because of its core mechanism which is the ability to bypass verbal communication and elicit psychological and emotional response through the expression of art. Compared to other forms of therapy, there is very little study that focuses on art therapy in the treatment of eating disorders. Existing literature have shown that there are therapeutic qualities in the art therapy process that might be useful in the field of eating disorders. This systematic review discusses the use of art therapy in the treatment of eating disorders with the aim to: (1) evaluate the effectiveness of using art therapy in the treatment of eating disorders; (2) recognize several therapeutic factors that emerge based on the literature of art therapy and eating disorders—expression, catharsis, and projection, and (3) examine the use of art therapy as a tool to identify conflicts in eating disorder patients—control, body image, isolation, self-esteem, and split self-image. The articles are retrieved from APA PsycNet, CORE, Google Scholar, ResearchGate, ScienceDirect, and Wiley Online Library. The selection process is adapted from PRISMA 2009 and findings are analyzed using the systematic review method. Articles reviewed focus on the use of art therapy in the treatment of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder—on individuals ranging from 11-60 years of age in which the majority of them are female. Findings indicate that the use of art therapy in the treatment of eating disorders is indeed effective and several therapeutic factors can be recognized. Certain themes of conflicts can also be identified through the artwork of eating disorder patients.

Copyright
© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

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Volume Title
Proceedings of the 1st Tarumanagara International Conference on Medicine and Health (TICMIH 2021)
Series
Advances in Health Sciences Research
Publication Date
1 December 2021
ISBN
10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.020
ISSN
2468-5739
DOI
10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.020How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

Cite this article

TY  - CONF
AU  - Zaida M. Prijatna
AU  - Monty P. Satiadarma
AU  - Linda Wati
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/12/01
TI  - The Use of Art Therapy in the Treatment of Eating Disorders: A Systematic Review
BT  - Proceedings of the 1st Tarumanagara International Conference on Medicine and Health (TICMIH 2021)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 103
EP  - 110
SN  - 2468-5739
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.020
DO  - 10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.020
ID  - Prijatna2021
ER  -