Exploring drawing as a tool for externalising and re-authoring conversations with children who have experienced trauma

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT : Given the high rates of abuse, violence, crime, life-threatening diseases and accidents in SouthAfrica, the experience of trauma is a reality faced by a sobering number of youths in our country.Due to the various maladaptive and lifelong implications of unresolved trauma, there is a dire needto address trauma experienced by our youth in a way that is both accessible and effective. Narrativetherapy in the resolution of trauma, avoids re-traumatisation and 'victimhood', and rather focuseson generating self-agency in response to trauma. The use of expressive arts in the resolution oftrauma, proposes that creative expression can aid individuals in expressing elements of theirtraumatic experience, which youths typically find difficult or are unwilling to express verbally.Realising the possible benefits of both approaches, this study sought to explore the use of drawingsintegrated into a narrative approach to the resolution of trauma, as experienced by youths. Thisqualitative study took place within a high school setting in an underprivileged community in theWestern Cape, marked by high rates of crime and violence. The study followed a phenomenologicaldesign where five participants engaged with drawing while talking about their experiences oftrauma through externalising and re-authoring conversations. It was found that all the participantsinitially held problem-saturated narratives dominated by the 'victimhood' of trauma. Through theapproach, participants were able to discover their values; special abilities and goals for the futurewhich allowed them to develop preferred stories of self-agency in the face of trauma – which in turnenhanced the development of self-efficacy in the participants. These transformations took place ina relatively short amount of time, which could have a positive influence on the resolution of traumawithin a South African context, where psychological support services are vastly limited. Fourparticipants found no direct value in the drawing component of the process and explained thisaccording to having a preference for verbal communication and that they felt that they could notexpress themselves through drawing. One participant found value in drawing component, whereshe reported that it aided her in talking about the difficult experience. As an unexpected finding,participants found value in an alternative creative activity that allowed them to symbolicallyrepresent their preferred stories, thus indicating that future research should explore other forms ofcreative outlets suited to the individual within a narrative approach to the resolution of trauma.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University