Abstract

There is increasing pressure on therapists to provide details of structured assessments and to report therapy outcomes to funders, employers and co-workers. This edited volume provides a series of case studies, with varied client groups, giving arts therapists an accessible introduction to assessment and outcome measures that can be easily incorporated into their regular practice.

The book provides demonstrations, within a practice-based evidence framework, of how measures can be tailored to the individual client's needs. The case studies show assessment and outcome models for music therapy, art therapy and dramatherapy used with a range of client groups including people with intellectual disabilities, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson's Disease and those suffering from depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or coping with bereavement.

Assessment and Outcomes in the Arts Therapies is truly a landmark publication lending credence to Arts Therapies in clinical practice; not only does this book set the standard for effective assessment approaches currently employed by experienced practitioners, I imagine it will generate great interest and challenge Arts Therapists and other professionals to recognise our diversity, strength, and untapped potential for further contributions to research within our profession.
Mary Brownlow, AThR, Art Therapist, Clinical Supervisor, and Interactive Drawing Therapy Teacher Trainer
As a Dramatherapist it was interesting to read of work by Music and Art and also Speech and Language Therapists with client groups with which I have some experience. This multi-disciplinary approach is very helpful in breaking down barriers and promoting cooperation... There is a wealth of material with tabulated Assessments and Outcomes for therapists in organisations wanting to see numerical and comparative scales. But also Assessment models developed within the therapeutic relationship rather than being pre-determined ones. There are well formulated questionnaires and summaries of outcomes, sometimes with parents' views too, and all the chapters have very clear sub-titles which make for easy reading... I would particularly recommend Caroline Miller's book to students and new graduates of the Arts Therapies who are seeking a comprehensive collection of Assessment models and descriptions of Arts Therapies Outcomes with a wide variety of client groups. As a Supervisor, Dramatherapist and Consultant I feel it is a valuable tool to recommend to supervisees and also people in organisations wanting clarity about different Arts Therapies approaches. For experienced practitioners this book can be of help in re-evaluating one's own practise and in gauging the need to change evaluation methods or ways of recording.
The Sesame Institute UK and International online Journal
This truly engaging and accessible volume will be of interest to Arts Therapists, Arts in Health practitioners and everyone interested in the healing properties of the arts. The contributors represent a wide range of arts therapies and arts based health interventions and demonstrate that providing evidence based practice is entirely compatible with a client centred philosophy. Their passion and commitment reach out from the page and draw us into an inspiring world of artistic enquiry based on their considerable levels of expertise and erudition in their chosen art form.
Madeline Andersen-Warren, Director of the Northern Trust for Dramatherapy, dramatherapist, author and researcher, Huddersfield, UK
This book is clearly a treasure-trove for both practitioners and researchers in the arts therapies. Caroline Miller and her New Zealand colleagues have provided fresh assessment tools and grounded them in detailed case studies and narratives. Session descriptions are often touching - especially where they describe clients on the autism spectrum. The collection invites the reader's profound understanding of informed research design and practice with adults and children: essential reading for arts therapists.
Joanna Jaaniste, Dramatherapist, Sydney, Australia