Art Therapy and Social Emotional Development in Students with Special Educational Needs: Effects on Anxiety, Empathy, and Prosocial Behaviour

Abstract

Although our research started before the pandemic, it seems that focusing on the social emotional development of our students has become a top priority, considering that, globally, the rates of anxiety among children and teenagers are, in the actual context of the pandemic and war, skyrocketing. One valuable way to promoting positive social emotional development is to implement in schools research-based programs that support students in strengthening their social and emotional competencies. Art therapy is one of the most suitable ways to serve this purpose, for it goes beyond words and gives the students the opportunity to deeper experience and process their emotions. This research used a structured group art therapy program to reduce anxiety and improve empathy and prosocial behaviour in 20 special educational needs students with neuro-psycho-motor deficiencies, aged between 8 and 11 years, who were randomly and equally assigned either to an experimental or a control group. The intervention was performed once weekly for ten weeks. Anxiety, empathy and prosocial behaviour have been measured using specific questionnaires filled out by the students’ caregivers at the beginning and at the end of the program. After ten weeks, the art therapy group showed a significant decrease in anxiety and a significant increase in empathy and prosocial behaviour. These findings suggest that art therapy might be used in an educational context to lower anxiety and to support the positive development of social emotional competencies such as empathy and prosocial behaviour in special educational needs children with neuro-psycho-motor deficiencies.