BIO

I am a second-year junior, double majoring in Human Development and Family Sciences and in Psychology. After graduating with my Bachelor of Science degree, I plan to attend graduate school to pursue a career in clinical psychology with an emphasis on the treatment of mental disorders onset by childhood trauma. I am Caribbean myself, so this research project allowed me to explore cultural nuances that are often overlooked.
My involvements on campus include serving as a community service chair for the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW) and a membership chair for the Caribbean Students' Association (CSA); I am also a 2024 Orientation Leader.

Artistic Expressions of Carribean Family Resilience Before and After COVID-19

Abstract

Families are population units that behave in distinct ways. Caribbean families are not the same as the Western idea of family. Cultures define family in ways that don't necessarily include only those who share the same blood. Mom, dad, and their daughters and sons are not the only members included.
Considering the distinctions in culture before and after the COVID-19 Pandemic, families respond to stress factors differently and can carry such experiences through art-making. Arts-based research aims to reconsider and, at times, distance the research process from traditional, western research methodology. Traditional methodology does not consider cultural distinctions, the subjectiveness of the human participant, and how the researchers' backgrounds affect the process.
Each Caribbean family was invited to create visual art about how they cope with stress as a family unit. Various art materials were provided, and they were allowed to express their approach freely.

Keywords: Carribean, family, art therapy, COVID-19, resilience