The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of group art therapy focusing on body image description on the self-esteem of elderly people and their satisfaction level with their bodies in a bid to seek ways of ironing out their psychological p...
The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of group art therapy focusing on body image description on the self-esteem of elderly people and their satisfaction level with their bodies in a bid to seek ways of ironing out their psychological problems triggered by aging and ensuing emotional and physical changes, such as lowered self-esteem and reduced satisfaction level with the body.
The subjects in this study were six elderly people who attended H welfare agency in Y-gu, Seoul. They were selected with their own consent after the agency and their social workers agreed. Group art therapy was provided to the elderly women in 16 sessions, once a week, 90 minutes each, from June 9 to September 29, 2008.
The instrument used to track any possible significant changes in their self-esteem and physical satisfaction level was Rosenberg(1965)'s Self- Esteem Scale and Kim Bong-sook(1986)'s Physical Satisfaction Level Scale that modified Secord & Jourard(1955)'s Physical Satisfaction Level Scale to suit the physical constitution of Korean people. Wilcoxon's signed rank test was utilized, and the record written by their therapists and transcription data were analyzed to see if they underwent any qualitative changes in the treatment process.
The findings about the research questions posed in this study were as follows:
First, whether the group art therapy that focused on body image description was effective at boosting the self-esteem of the elderly people was checked, and there was an improvement in their self-esteem after the group art therapy was applied.
Second, whether the group art therapy composed of body image description was effective at bolstering the physical satisfaction level of the elderly people was investigated, and there was a change in their average satisfaction level. When their satisfaction level with their bodies changed by simple aging and by physical symptoms was checked, they underwent little changes in satisfaction level with the bodies altered by physical symptoms, but they showed a statistically significant change in satisfaction level with the bodies changed by simple aging.
Third, whether the group art therapy program that consisted of body image description brought any qualitative changes to the elderly people was analyzed, and there was progress in their self-expression, mutual sympathy and positive support, and their group cohesion improved as well in accordance with the developmental stage of their groups. Thus, they made strides in physical satisfaction level and self-esteem in the course of social interaction.
In conclusion, the group art therapy constituted by body image description had a positive impact on bolstering the self-esteem of the elderly people. Although the program wasn't able to give them physical satisfaction in every regard, that exerted a favorable influence on their satisfaction level with the body altered by simple aging, namely the part of the body related to self-esteem. Moreover, the group art therapy brought additional favorable changes to them including improved psychological stability, more dynamic social interaction and better self-expression.
The findings of the study suggested that the group art therapy composed of body image description allowed the elderly people who were psychologically maladjusted due to physical changes to have a more positive body image, to enhance their self-esteem and ultimately to lead a better quality of life. And the findings justified the diverse applicability of the group art therapy constituted by body image description as a way to resolve the psychological conflicts of elderly people.