Citizenship, Compassion, the Arts: People Living with Mental Illness Need a Caring Community

Abstract

Furthering social inclusion for marginalised members of society demands advocacy efforts focussed on holistic citizenship. Harnessing compassion, the arts can activate four component elements: narratives, actual stories and voices of members of a society; encounters, opportunities for dialogue among members of a society; reflection, values clarification and self-awareness and community, spaces that allow for creative engagement. This theoretical framework is demonstrated in an 18-month campaign designed to promote social inclusion by decreasing stigma and increasing public awareness of people living with mental illness in Hong Kong. The programme utilised an art exhibition created by people living with mental illness, guided relational viewing art-making workshops for the general public, and collaborative art-making opportunities. Integrating compassion and the arts into the citizenship framework provided participants with opportunities to engage with one another, clarify misconceptions and arrive at meaningful social policy programmatic initiatives.

Art Therapy as Psychosocial Support for FARC Reincorporation

“…Even though there was not an opportunity to bring the former FARC members together with civilians, the ex-combatant's artwork and the woman's imagery indicate how art making offers a foundation for sharing narratives in order to initiate dialogue across differences. This has similarities as reported by Potash, Ho, and Ho (2018), in their work reviewing the links amongst citizenship, compassion, and the arts.…”

Arts for ageing well: a propensity score matching analysis of the effects of arts engagements on holistic well-being among older Asian adults above 50 years of age

“…This in turn facilitates motivation for narrative identity processing,48 a constructive reflection process of character building that fosters life meaning and self-affirmation, leading to the development of self-mastery 49 50. Through arts engagements, individuals would also encounter relational aesthetics, an experience of emotional connections via metaphoric dialogue with the arts and the artists that broadens perspectives and nurtures diversity, while inspiring human connections, empathy and compassionate citizenry 51 52. Arts engagement may also have a role to play in stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system, leading to a greater sense of peace and relaxation 53.…”

Enhancing intergroup dialogues through art and art therapy

“…The workshop ends with a summary of the participants' experiences that indicate emergent practices for engaging in cross‐cultural, racial, and/or political discussions. We also encourage participants to think about how they can incorporate the lessons from the workshop to instigate meaningful actions for social change (Potash et al, 2018). Participants often identify ways to be curious during conversations.…”

“…Huss (2016) and Huss, Kaufman, Avgar, and Shuker (2016) documented how such work can simultaneously address personal trauma and resilience while also fomenting community relationships, narratives, and meaning making. Others have demonstrated how the combination of art exhibits and response art can lead to stigma reduction and empathy, as well as problem solving and policy initiatives (Ho, Potash, Ho, Ho, & Chen, 2017; Potash, Ho, & Ho, 2018; Spaniol & Bluebird, 2002).…”