This study analyzed the common themes and symbols expressed in group sandpictures of Rohingya refugees children who had fled from racial and religion oppressions in Myanmar and settled in Malaysia. A total of eight children who attended an international refugee school located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia participated in the study. The school is under the auspice of the UN Refugee Agency. These children were given three group sandplay sessions of 90 minutes over a period of two weeks. The participants' sandpictures and comments during therapy were interpreted through an analytical psychological approach, after which the collected data was classified according to their similarities. Then the data was narrowed down, and themes that often arose in the sandpictures were categorized. As a result, five common themes were observed: destruction and death, ceaseless fighting, family members at risk, survival of the boat people, and the first step toward a normal life. The participants represented traumas they received, from the process of violent repression, evacuation, and adaptation to Malaysia, through direct linguistic expressions together with destructive and endless fighting sandpicture scenes. This study provided them with an opportunity to express their traumas and psychological distress under a trust-based relationship amongst the group members and to recognize the possibility that they could bring changes into their lives.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2025 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.