Digital art therapy

Domain VIII · Creative & expressive arts therapies

What it is

Digital art therapy is not one manualised therapy with a founder. It is an umbrella term for art therapy in which digital technology is either (a) the art medium (tablet and touchscreen drawing apps, digital photography and collage, film and animation, VR painting) or (b) the way therapy is…

Format

• Session counts and formats reported (these describe study protocols, not prescriptions):
• Tablet: five individual 1-hour sessions about a week apart, in a quiet room.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• UK: "art therapist" and "art psychotherapist" are titles protected by HCPC registration, which follows an approved master's training. BAAT is the professional body. BAAT expects online practitioners to meet HCPC standards of proficiency and of conduct, performance and ethics, to complete CPD in online practice, and to be supervised by someone competent in online work.
• USA: AATA is the professional association and the Art Therapy Credentials Board (ATCB) is the credentialing body (ATR, ATR-BC)].
• Other psychotherapists: a psychotherapist who is not an art therapist can use simple digital drawing or photo tasks as an adjunct within their own modality and competence. They should not describe this as art therapy, and should not run immersive VR or projective drawing assessment without training and supervision in those methods.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• Endless undo used to avoid committing to an image (see section 5).
• Games can take over from art making. Use them for a set time, then return to image work.
• Talk that stays on technical features ("this brush is cool"). Gently bring it back to experience and meaning.
• Growing independence with the device, which in the study increased across sessions. Distress at accidental marks.
• Semi-anonymity can lower worry about appearance and judgement, but it also allows inappropriate online behaviour. Moderate actively.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.