Arts therapies and Schema Focused therapy: A pilot study

Arts therapies and Schema Focused therapy (SFT), use experiential techniques to help patients access and reprocess emotions. We conducted a randomized controlled pilot study to determine the effectiveness of these therapies at evoking emotional states (“schema modes”) in forensic patients, a group that is considered difficult to reach emotionally. Ten male forensic patients with Cluster B personality disorders who were enrolled in a randomized clinical trial of SFT versus usual forensic treatment (“treatment as usual,” TAU) participated in the study. We investigated the effect of Arts therapies versus verbal psychotherapy, and SFT versus TAU on modes. As hypothesized, patients showed significantly more healthier emotional states in their Arts therapy sessions than in their verbal psychotherapy sessions SFT evoked more childmodes than TAU, at a trend level of significance. Patients in the SFT and TAU conditions showed no differences in schema modes early in therapy, and were equivalent on all baseline characteristics. These findings, though requiring replication in a larger sample, suggest that Arts therapies and SFT have potential for evoking emotional states in difficult to reach patients.

► Arts therapies and Schema Focused therapy (SFT) help patients access emotions.
► We examined their effectiveness in evoking emotional states in forensic patients.
► Patients showed more healthy emotional states in Arts therapy.
► Patients overcompensated more in verbal therapy than in Arts therapy.
► Arts therapies and SFT are potentially effective in accessing patient's emotions.