Resources/Research
This page is in development and continually being updated and modified. You don’t have to be a specialist in any particular field to appreciate and learn about the benefits of the creative process. If you know of research or information that may support this website that you would like to share, please contact me directly and I may add it here. I also welcome any thoughts on improving this website or space. Part of my mission is to spread the word and create a discussion on the positive wellness benefits of participation in the arts and the creativity experience, and how the spaces inhabit shape how we think, feel and connect. These topics are not just about creating “feel-good” experiences for individuals, but have real and positive influences on health, well-being and our society as a whole.
A handy guide on the power of play and suggestions on how to integrate it into your daily life: The Power of Play: Why Adults Need It and How to Integrate It into Daily Life — A Healing Place
Working on an art project for just 45 minutes, regardless of your skill, can decrease stress and has been shown to reduce cortisol levels in up to 75 percent of people.
In 2023 Ivy Ross, and Susa Magsamen published Your Brain on Art. The book is a guide to the new science of neuroaesthics that includes breakthrough research, interviews and stories from people in many fields of work and study, It’s an exciting call to bring back the arts, how it can make an impact on health and medicine and discusses the integration between science and the arts.
People who experience trauma can have difficulty with taking about their traumatic experience because of a shut down in the Broca’s area of the brain (one of the regions responsible for language and speech). This was observed in the research of Dutch psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk who used fMRI scans. Art interventions can help people who have experienced trauma make sense of their experiences and enables them to restore their ability to share their memories with less emotional dysregulation. Creative Forces, is one such intervention program.
The NeuroArts Blueprint was launched in 2021 to build awareness of the intersections between science, the arts and technology. “Its mission is to cultivate an ecosystem for neuroarts, defined here as the transdisciplinary and extradisciplinary study of how the arts and aesthetic experiences measurably change the body, brain, and behavior, and how this knowledge is translated into specific practices that advance health and wellbeing”
Can Coloring Mandalas Reduce Anxiety? A Replication Study: Art Therapy: Vol 29, No 2
The virtuousness of adult playfulness: the relation of playfulness with strengths of character | Psychology of Well-Being | Full Text This 2011 study found that higher playfulness scores were associated with: higher creativity, appreciating beauty, approaching life with excitement and energy, playful expressions of love, a sense of hope, a sense of humor.
The Playful Advantage: How Playfulness Enhances Coping with Stress: Leisure Sciences: Vol 35, No 2
The Importance of Play for Adults - National Institute for Play
The Importance of Play for Adults: Tips for Being More Playful
Why It's Important To Make Time For Play As An Adult | Henry Ford Health - Detroit, MI
The Power of Play for Adults (Reignite Your Joy) - Personal Growth