Exploring Paternal Mentalization Among Fathers of Toddlers Through a Clay-Sculpting Task

Abstract

This study explored parental mentalization processes as they unfolded during a sculpting task administered to fathers of toddlers. Parental mentalization—the parent’s ability to understand behavior (his/her own as a parent and that of their child) based on its underlying mental states (Luyten et al., 2017)—is considered crucial within parent–child relationships (Fonagy et al., 1998) and child development (Steele and Steele, 2008). Eleven Israeli first-time fathers (n = 11) of children aged 2–3 (mean = 2.3) were asked to sculpt a representation of themselves with their child using clay. Following the task, the fathers were interviewed while observing the sculpture they had created. Qualitative thematic analysis integrated three types of data—video footage of the sculpting processes, the sculptures themselves, and the transcripts of the post-sculpting interviews. By focusing on data extracts relating to mentalization processes, three main aspects of the clay-sculpting task and interview were identified as processes that either preceded controlled mentalization instances and/or related to their underlying dynamics: (1) discussing the sculpting process elicited the father’s curiosity and wonder; (2) observing the sculpture/sculpting process revealed gaps in paternal representations; and (3) the preplanning of the sculptures sparked non-verbal exploration of metaphors and symbolism. Special attention was given, in the analysis, to the interplay between verbal and non-verbal aspects of mentalization as they appeared in the metaphorical representations that arose through the sculpting process. Comparing this sample to a previous sample of mothers who were given the same task, similarities and differences were explored, with specific reference to topics of embodiment, gender roles, paternity leave, and an active approach in art therapy. The discussion indicates that clay sculpting may offer unique insight into implicit parental mentalization. Possible clinical applications are discussed, with reference to attachment theory and clinical art therapy approaches.

Trends in Research on Art Therapy Indexed in the Web of Science: A Bibliometric Analysis

“…In the specific case of the visual arts modality (drawing, illustration, painting, collage, photography and sculpture), art therapy not only prevails as a clinical intervention tool (Cheng et al, 2021;Hass-Cohen et al, 2021;Tang et al, 2021) but also as a diagnostic tool (Akhavan Tafti et al, 2021;Goldner et al, 2021;Grenimann Bauch and Bat Or, 2021), which gives it a versatile and innovative character, and which distinguishes it from the other art therapy modalities. Bearing in mind the above, and given the variety of studies and publications in this regard, it is of interest to have a more in-depth view of the scope and characteristics of the existing research; bibliometrics is the ideal instrument for this objective since by using bibliometric indicators, it is possible to evaluate scientific activity in any discipline or area of knowledge, and thus determine different basic categories that define who the producing people, institutions or countries are, how much they produce, what the impact of their publications is and how they collaborate with each other (Rodríguez Gutiérrez and Gómez Velasco, 2017).…”