Purposeful Client Work: the Justification of Creative Arts Therapy in Eating Disorder Recovery

The purpose of this Bachelor’s Thesis was to find justifications for creative arts therapy use in eating disorder recovery. The aim was to produce information on the topic as well as offer some theory that could be utilized in the social services field. The customer-centered approach, diagnostics and classification of eating disorder pathology, and creative arts therapy research were chosen as the theoretical framework of this Bachelor’s Thesis. The thesis was conducted by carrying out a qualitative literature review on five (5) recent academic articles and the findings were analyzed using the content analysis method. The findings were categorized and cross-referenced in order to answer the main research question and to produce new information. Research results showed that creative arts therapies can be used in treating eating disorders because the methods can increase well-being in the affected areas, such as emotional regulation, memory bias and trauma. Professionals in the social service field may use these findings as theoretical justification for using creative arts therapy methods in eating disorder recovery work. Research on this topic is scarce, so suggestions for the future include long-term clinical studies with large sample groups and appropriate education for professionals in the field