Research Symposium

BIO

I am a first-year student at FSU, coming from St. Petersburg. I am from a city that has been influenced by many different cultures from across the world and continues that tradition to this day. Being from St. Petersburg has made me very inclined to learn more about the wider world. My research interests have, as a result, been internationally focused, but I love learning about the arts, geography, history, and development. My future goals are to attain my master's in public administration from Florida State University and live abroad. I am, however, very flexible, like my research, and will be glad to see what opportunities await me anywhere in the future.

Community Art Therapy and Caribbean Adolescents

Abstract

The following study is designed to determine whether community art therapy improves self-esteem among youth in the Caribbean. The Caribbean as a region has been historically underrepresented, and that also applies to research with art therapy in the region. With a large youth population and an artistic heritage, exploring this subject in the Caribbean is a key step toward understanding the impact of community art therapy on a global scale.
Prior to beginning the experiment, assumption testing was conducted using the Box test. Afterwards, multivariate testing was implemented, with participants from the Caribbean analyzed before and after the community art therapy experiment. From there, a univariate follow-up analysis was used to determine whether there was statistical significance between the dependent variable and individual growth in self-esteem, religiosity, and spirituality.
Based on the univariate follow-up analyses, there was no statistical significance for the self-esteem and religiosity dependent variables; however, there was a statistically significant correlation between community art therapy and increased spirituality among Caribbean youth. Statistical significance would therefore indicate that community art therapy can be a powerful tool for helping youth foster their personal spiritual growth. During times of hardship, spiritual growth through community art therapy can be an effective way to build resilience.

Keywords: Caribbean, youth, art, community