UROP Project
International, adolescent, teens, community-based, visual art, art therapy
Research Mentor: kdonald@fsu.edu Karina Donald, She, her
Department, College, Affiliation: Florida State University, Fine Arts
Contact Email: kdonald@fsu.edu
Research Assistant Supervisor (if different from mentor):
Research Assistant Supervisor Email:
Faculty Collaborators:
Faculty Collaborators Email:
Department, College, Affiliation: Florida State University, Fine Arts
Contact Email: kdonald@fsu.edu
Research Assistant Supervisor (if different from mentor):
Research Assistant Supervisor Email:
Faculty Collaborators:
Faculty Collaborators Email:
Looking for Research Assistants: No
Number of Research Assistants: 1
Relevant Majors: Open to all majors
Project Location: On FSU Main Campus
Research Assistant Transportation Required: Remote or In-person: Partially Remote
Approximate Weekly Hours: 5-7,
Roundtable Times and Zoom Link: Tuesday September 3 2-2:30 pm https://fsu.zoom.us/j/97603242073
Wednesday September 4 5-5:30 pm https://fsu.zoom.us/j/97603242073
Thursday September 5 6-6:30 pm https://fsu.zoom.us/j/99971152596
Number of Research Assistants: 1
Relevant Majors: Open to all majors
Project Location: On FSU Main Campus
Research Assistant Transportation Required: Remote or In-person: Partially Remote
Approximate Weekly Hours: 5-7,
Roundtable Times and Zoom Link: Tuesday September 3 2-2:30 pm https://fsu.zoom.us/j/97603242073
Wednesday September 4 5-5:30 pm https://fsu.zoom.us/j/97603242073
Thursday September 5 6-6:30 pm https://fsu.zoom.us/j/99971152596
Project Description
Community engagement is considered helpful among Caribbean people who are navigating challenges. In particular, research indicates the protective nature of social support on adolescent self-esteem. It is believed that community art therapy plays a pivotal role in strengthening and enhancing communities and participatory research approach could assist in assessing and addressing community needs. However, it is unclear how art therapists should merge community and other cultural values for sustaining or increasing self-esteem among Caribbean youth. Therefore, this project explores the impact of community art therapy on the well-being of Caribbean youth, specifically focusing on self-esteem and types of visual arts that boost Caribbean youth well-being.Research Tasks: Literature review; data collection, arts data analysis; manuscript preparation
Skills that research assistant(s) may need: The research assistant(s) will be working with graduate students and I to collect data, analyze visual arts data, manuscript preparation and possibly present at a research conference in late Spring 2024. Therefore, curiosity about the research process is important. Research assistants will need to learn from their experiences and from ongoing collaboration. Although experiences of working in a team is not required, openness to working in a team on a research project is necessary. Skills that will be helpful are: literature review, academic writing, data analysis, and preparation of a manuscript. Writing skills are important because we will be preparing a manuscript. There will be opportunities to learn new skills; therefore, I hope that research assistant(s) will be open to share their triumphs, mistakes, and questions throughout our research relationship.
Mentoring Philosophy
I enjoy the process of collaborating with students and also seeing them grow in knowledge about themselves and about the world. Therefore, I prefer a developmental approach in my mentorship. Mentees learn through having a variety of experiences. I believe that there are phases that mentees work in reaching their professional goals. Each phase is built upon previous knowledge, skills, and experiences. Through disclosing my research and professional experiences that are applicable to mentees’ tasks, I hope that mentees can process how they are gaining new insights and skills to increase openness to talk about successes, challenges, and mistakes in their work. I prefer open communication about mentees’ needs and goals to support accomplishment of research projects.Ultimately, my mentorship model is experiential. Hands-on learning is beneficial to mentees’ development. I do not believe in talking at mentees; talking with mentees creates stronger relationships and teams. Change occurs in teams through mutual encouragement of growth and being flexible. When one team member changes through authentic communication, the entire team shifts and benefits. My collaborative way of processing options in research helps mentees develop skills that are applicable yet unique to their professional goals and personality. By mentees willing to integrate their personality in our collaborative work, their confidence and skills in research blossoms.