Exploring the Impacts of an Art and Narrative Therapy Program on Participants’ Grief and Bereavement Experiences

This project was conducted by CESI's research shop in collaboration with Hospice Wellington, a charitable organization that provides support and care to individuals who are living with life-threatening illnesses or experiencing grief and bereavement. The project focuses on Hospice Wellington’s art therapy program which uses the creation of art and accompanying written reflections to help participants explore their relationships with grief and find a sense of meaning in their experiences of loss. It explores the grief experiences of participants during their time in the program, the nature, extent, and impacts of social and community connections that were made, how the program influenced grief over time, and the overall effectiveness of the program. The project concludes that art and narrative therapy hold great therapeutic potential as a tool to help individuals going through a grief or bereavement process. 

In addition to the journal article, a blog post written by graduate student researchers involved in this project is available. This blog post provides insight on managing self-care while working on projects with potentially sensitive and intense subject matter. 

Read the Exploring the Impacts of an Art and Narrative Therapy Program on Participants’ Grief and Bereavement Experiences Article and the Managing Researcher Self-Care Blog Post.