8th Annual Conference of the German Scientific Association for Arts Therapies
8. Jahrestagung der Wissenschaftlichen Fachgesellschaft für Künstlerische Therapien
The Schwarzlichtmethode
Text
This master’s thesis is built on the author’s bachelor thesis (Litzen 2020), which introduced the Schwarzlichtmethode (a blacklight based art therapy intervention, SLM) for individuals with psychosis in a Soteria setting. In this intervention, trained art therapists guide participants as they work with fluorescent paints on paper under blacklight. Participants complete nine themed artworks, with themes unknown to them beforehand. Each artwork is created within a three-minute time limit to facilitate intuitive expression. Participants remain seated near the room’s light switch so they can interrupt the perceptual shift caused by the blacklight at any time. After completing the series of artworks, a structured artwork review takes place. The present paper investigates whether SLM can be effectively used in practice when supported by a therapist manual and whether it promotes the integration of psychotic experiences across diverse art therapy settings. For this purpose, the method is manualized, and both the usability of the manual and the feasibility of the intervention are examined through a Mixed Methods Approach. The research question is addressed through qualitative interviews and quantitative data collection, including two evaluation questionnaires and an image analysis based on the Ratinginstrument für zweidimensionale bildnerische Arbeiten (a German assessment tool for two dimensional artworks). The findings demonstrate that SLM can be successfully applied by academically trained art therapists in various outpatient and inpatient settings when guided by the manual. The study provides insight into how and to what extent method related factors of SLM take effect. A correlation between SLM intervention and the therapeutic relationship was identified. SLM emerges as a relational method that can positively influence and support the integration of psychotic experiences.



