Research Institute for Creative Arts Therapies (RIArT)

RIArT’s mission is to:

• bring together the specific nature of art with evidence-based results (e.g. in suitable creative arts therapy study protocols)
• advance the empirical investigation of central mechanisms of action in creative arts therapies
• highlight the contribution of creative arts therapies to the preservation and maintenance of unique bodies of knowledge
• describe the effects and active factors of creative arts therapies participatorily and from the patient perspective
• and promote theory-building in creative arts therapies

Focus areas:

Prof. Dr. Sabine C. Koch // Dance and movement therapy, embodiment, creative arts therapies with refugees, autism, evidence-based research, research on active factors

Prof. Dr. Harald Gruber // Art therapy, art therapy in oncology and palliative medicine, qualitative methods, research on active factors

PD Dr. Susann Kobus // Music therapy, music therapy research in neonatology and paediatrics

Jun. Prof. Dr. Maya Halatcheva-Trapp // Arts-based research, qualitative research methods, intuition and aesthetic experience in research practice

Dr. Katharina Gerlach // Eurythmy therapy, depression, documentation, single-case protocols, basic research in healthcare medicine

Mei Ling Tan M.A. // Music therapy, dementia, evidence-based research, evidence synthesis, reviews, meta-analyses

Clara Cornaro M.A. // Dance and movement therapy, dementia, family caregivers, participatory research, active factors, reviews

Dr. Renate Oepen // Art therapy and dance therapy, prevention and health promotion, obesity, creative arts online therapy, systematic reviews, research methods

Trauma Recovery after the Flood: Implementation of the Flood Relief Project “kreARTiv – From Shadow into Light” for People Affected by the 2021 Flood Disaster 

The project “kreARTiv – From Shadow into Light” was developed and implemented as an arts-based therapeutic support programme for people affected by the 2021 flood disaster in the Ahr Valley. It was developed in response to the high levels of psychological distress in the region, as well as limited access to psychotherapeutic care and long waiting times.

Using an interdisciplinary approach, group interventions in art therapy, music therapy, dance/movement therapy, and drama therapy were offered to children, adolescents, and adults. In addition, community-oriented formats such as Capoeira groups were implemented to strengthen resilience, self-regulation, and social participation through structured, embodied, and creative activities. A concluding cultural festival further opened the project to the wider public under the theme “How Art Creates Health.”

The aim of the project was to provide an accessible form of psychosocial support and to address the psychological consequences of the flood disaster across all age groups. Arts-based therapies offer embodied and non-verbal pathways to trauma recovery and are particularly suitable for individuals for whom verbal approaches are less accessible or less effective.

The project was accompanied by a scientific evaluation assessing changes in trauma symptoms, depression, anxiety, and stress, as well as resilience, self-efficacy, self-esteem, and well-being across different age groups, including comparisons with a waitlist control group.

First preliminary results (N=37) are already available from a pilot study. A summary is provided below:

Abstract:
Natural disasters are becoming increasingly frequent and severe due to climate change. Preliminary research indicates a high prevalence of psychological distress and PTSD among directly affected individuals following natural disasters, as well as secondary trauma among helpers. This study investigated the effects of creative arts therapies (CAT) on trauma symptoms, psychological distress, well-being, resilience, self-esteem, and self-efficacy in adults affected by the 2021 floods in Germany, and whether these effects differed from those of a waitlist control group. Creative arts therapies provide a creative, embodied, and non-verbal approach to trauma treatment. Current literature on CAT following disasters focuses mainly on children and relies almost exclusively on qualitative methods. This study addresses this research gap through a quasi-experimental controlled design examining the effects of CAT on the health of flood survivors compared to a waitlist control group. Participants (N=38; adults and two adolescents) were assessed on trauma symptoms (PTSD short screening, PCL-5 checklist), depression, anxiety, and stress (DASS-21), well-being (HSI-24), resilience (RS-13), self-efficacy (ASKU), self-esteem (RSE), as well as stress, quality of life, and life satisfaction (VAS scales). Repeated-measures ANOVA showed a significant reduction in PTSD symptoms and stress levels, alongside increases in well-being, resilience, self-esteem, and physical quality of life from baseline to follow-up among participants in the CAT interventions. Analysis also indicated a clear reduction in depression and stress from pre-test to follow-up. Independent samples t-tests showed that CAT participants had significantly higher levels of well-being and resilience after the intervention compared to the control group. Preliminary findings partially support the effectiveness of CAT in improving trauma symptoms, well-being, and protective factors among flood survivors. The main study with over 150 participants will determine whether these effects are confirmed and generalisable across age groups.

In total, more than 30 group-based programmes were conducted, reaching over 200 participants, demonstrating the feasibility and reach of low-threshold arts-based psychosocial interventions in post-disaster contexts.

A catalogue was conceived as part of the cultural festival (December 2025), and it contains artworks created by participants as well as reflections from both participants and therapists throughout the project. It is now published and freely available online (in German): https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17685608

Contact: Prof. Dr. Sabine Koch, Dr. Susann Kobus, Katharina Forstreuter

(in English)

Trauma Recovery after the Flood: Implementation of the Flood Relief Project “kreARTiv – From Shadow into Light” for People Affected by the 2021 Flood Disaster

The project “kreARTiv – From Shadow into Light” was developed and implemented as an arts-based therapeutic support programme for people affected by the 2021 flood disaster in the Ahr Valley. It was developed in response to the high levels of psychological distress in the region, as well as limited access to psychotherapeutic care and long waiting times.

Using an interdisciplinary approach, group interventions in art therapy, music therapy, dance/movement therapy, and drama therapy were offered to children, adolescents, and adults. In addition, community-oriented formats such as Capoeira groups were implemented to strengthen resilience, self-regulation, and social participation through structured, embodied, and creative activities. A concluding cultural festival further opened the project to the wider public under the theme “How Art Creates Health.”

The aim of the project was to provide an accessible form of psychosocial support and to address the psychological consequences of the flood disaster across all age groups. Arts-based therapies offer embodied and non-verbal pathways to trauma recovery and are particularly suitable for individuals for whom verbal approaches are less accessible or less effective.

The project was accompanied by a scientific evaluation assessing changes in trauma symptoms, depression, anxiety, and stress, as well as resilience, self-efficacy, self-esteem, and well-being across different age groups, including comparisons with a waitlist control group.

First preliminary results (N=37) are already available from a pilot study. A summary is provided below:

Abstract:

Natural disasters are becoming increasingly frequent and severe due to climate change. Preliminary research indicates a high prevalence of psychological distress and PTSD among directly affected individuals following natural disasters, as well as secondary trauma among helpers. This study investigated the effects of creative arts therapies (CAT) on trauma symptoms, psychological distress, wellbeing, resilience, self-esteem, and self-efficacy in adults affected by the 2021 floods in Germany, and whether these effects differed from those of a waitlist control group. Creative arts therapies provide a creative, embodied, and non-verbal approach to trauma treatment. Current literature on CAT following disasters focuses mainly on children and relies almost exclusively on qualitative methods. This study addresses this research gap through a quasi-experimental controlled design examining the effects of CAT on the health of flood survivors compared to a waitlist control group. Participants (N=38; adults and two adolescents) were assessed on trauma symptoms (PTSD short screening, PCL-5 checklist), depression, anxiety, and stress (DASS-21), wellbeing (HSI-24), resilience (RS-13), self-efficacy (ASKU), self-esteem (RSE), as well as stress, quality of life, and life satisfaction (VAS scales). Repeated-measures ANOVA showed a significant reduction in PTSD symptoms and stress levels, alongside increases in wellbeing, resilience, self-esteem, and physical quality of life from baseline to follow-up among participants in the CAT interventions. Analysis also indicated a clear reduction in depression and stress from pre-test to follow-up. Independent samples t-tests showed that CAT participants had significantly higher levels of wellbeing and resilience after the intervention compared to the control group. Preliminary findings partially support the effectiveness of CAT in improving trauma symptoms, wellbeing, and protective factors among flood survivors. The main study with over 150 participants will determine whether these effects are confirmed and generalisable across age groups.

In total, more than 30 group-based programmes were conducted, reaching over 200 participants, demonstrating the feasibility and reach of low-threshold arts-based psychosocial interventions in post-disaster contexts.

A catalogue was conceived as part of the cultural festival (December 2025), and it contains artworks created by participants as well as reflections from both participants and therapists throughout the project. It is now published and freely available online (in German): https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17685608

Contact: Prof. Dr. Sabine Koch, Dr. Susann Kobus, Katharina Forstreuter

A selection of recent individual publications is listed below. For a comprehensive overview of the publications by RIArT researchers, please refer to the respective staff pages.

• Gerlach, K. (2025). Treatment of spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 with eurythmy therapy – a case vignette. Der Merkurstab. Journal for Anthroposophic Medicine, 78(5), 316-321. https://doi.org/10.14271/DMS-21967-DE
• Gerlach, K. (2025). Intuition-based decisions in Eurythmy Therapy interventions, annual conference of the Medical Section at the Goetheanum Der Merkurstab 2025 https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.21829.77280 
• Koch, S. C., Stange, S., Ernst, N., Kinnen, J., Juhart, M., Schöder, M., Schwab de Ribaupierre, U., Merschmeyer, B., Klees, S., Junker, J, & Huess, H. (2025). ‘Strong Kids’: Effects of drama therapy on child resilience after the 2021 German flood disaster. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 92, 102254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2025.102254. 
• Köhler, R., Anheyer, D., Koch, S. C., & Ostermann, T. (2025). Capoeira and its effects on health-related outcomes — a systematic review. Journal of Integrative and Complementary Medicine, 31(9), 780–788. https://doi.org/10.1089/jicm.2024.0490.
• Matevosyan, G., Tan, M. L., & Uhlig, S. (2025). Exploring Community Singing for Mothers of Fallen Soldiers – a Music Therapy Intervention to Enhance Well-Being. Musiktherapeutische Umschau, 05/2025. https://doi.org/10.13109/muum.2025.46.2.194 
• Oepen, R., Roy, C., Gruber, H., & Paul, E. (2025). Conditions and effects of creative arts online therapies – a systematic review and a categorisation of active factors. GMS Journal of Arts Therapies, 7, doc04. https://doi.org/10.3205/jat000044
• Raja, T. L. S., Dumaresq, E. & Koch, S.C. (2025). Dance in prisons: A systematic review and narrative synthesis. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 97:102403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2025.102403 
• Schwab, L., Estel, S. M., Freiberg, A., DuBois, A., Cornaro, C., & Koch, S. C. (2025). Therapeutic factors of dance movement therapy from the perspective of patients and therapists – a multicenter clinical study. GMS Journal of Arts Therapies, 2025/7:Doc08. https://doi.org/10.3205/jat000048.
• Wirth, M., Stamer, S., Podolski, O., Maßalsky, A., Koch, S.C., & Klimecki, O. (2025). REMINDer randomized controlled study: Feasibility and impact of an online multimodal mind–body intervention in older adults. Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Behavior & Socioeconomics of Aging, 1(3). 2025;e70032 (Wiley). https://doi.org/10.1002/bsa3.70032 (Protocol for this RCT: Wirth, M., Stamer S., Podolski, O., Maßalsky, A., Koch, S. C., & Klimecki, O. (2024). The REMINDer randomized controlled study: Feasibility and effects of an online multimodal mind-body intervention in older adults. Posted Nov 11th, 2024; medRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.11.10.24317080).
• Halatcheva-Trapp, M. (2024). Book review of family ethnography: Jagoda Motowidlo, Streiten auf Distanz!? Transnational family practice in sociotechnical constellations. Bielefeld: transcript, 2023. In: Soziologische Revue 47 (1), pp. 86-88, https://doi.org/10.1515/srsr-2024-2006
• Halatcheva-Trapp, M. & Poferl, A. (2024). Jane Addams and the Hull-House Maps & Papers. A Knowledge-Culture Approach. In: Kieler  sozialwissenschaftliche Revue. Internationales Tönnies-Forum 2 (1), pp. 7-18, https://doi.org/10.3224/ksr.v2i1.02

There is a very close cooperation with Witten/Herdecke University, Faculty of Health, Chair of Medical Theory, Integrative and Anthroposophic Medicine, Prof. Dr. David Martin, Prof. Dr. Arndt Büssing, PD. Dr. Bettina Berger, Prof. Dr. Dirk Czysarz, and the Integrative Accompanying Studies in Anthroposophic Medicine (IBAM), Prof. Dr. Friedrich Edelhäuser. Prof. Dr. Thomas Ostermann, Department of Psychology and Psychotherapy. The cooperation between the Department of Creative Arts Therapies and Therapy Sciences at Alanus University and Witten/Herdecke University was a key prerequisite for the establishment of the Research Institute for Creative Arts Therapies at Alanus University. Its tasks include building the structures of the cooperative research institute and developing and implementing a doctoral programme for creative arts therapies.

International cooperation partners: Drexel University, Lesley University, New York University, University of Haifa, University of Melbourne, University of Edge Hill, University of Amsterdam, University of Hong Kong.

See more detailed information and projects under: NYU Creative Arts Therapies Consortium 

University Cooperations

• Department for Creative Arts Therapies, PhD Program // Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA // Prof. Dr. Sherry Goodill (DMT ), Prof. Dr. Joke Bradt (MT), Prof. Dr. Nancy Gerber (AT)
• PhD Program Expressive Arts Therapies // Lesley University, Boston, USA // Prof. Dr. Robyn Cruz (DMT), Rebecca Zarate (MT), Nancy Berdal (DMT), Jason Butler (DT)…
• New York University (NYU), Creative Arts Therapies, Drama Therapy // Prof. Dr. Nisha Sanjani (DT)
• Creative Arts Therapies Research Institute // University of Haifa // Prof. Dr. Hod Orkibi, Prof. Dr. Dita Federman, Prof. Dr. Rachel Lev; Prof. Dr. Dafna Regev; Prof. Dr. Einat Shuper-Engelhart
• Creative Arts Therapy Research Unit // University of Melbourne Australia // Dr. Kim Dunphy, Prof. Dr. Felicity Baker, Prof. Dr. Katherina McFerran, Prof. Dr. Janette Grandin, Prof. Dr. Imogen Clark, and others
• Art Therapy Program // Hofstra University, USA // Prof. Dr. Elkis-Abuhoff (AT)
• Art Therapy and Social Work // University of Negev, IL // Prof. Dr. Ephrat Huss (AT)
• Somatic Psychology Program // Naropa University, Boulder, CO // Prof. Dr. Christine Caldwell (DMT)
• Dance Movement Psychotherapy // University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK // Prof. Dr. Helen Payne (DMT)
• Directorate of Nursing, Therapies and Social Work, Research and Development // Psychiatric University Hospital (Burghölzli) Zurich, CH // Dr. Iris Bräuninger (DMT)
• Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) Instituto National de Radiología y Oncología (INOR) Havana // Universidad de las Artes Cuba // Ms C. Ruslan Torres Leyva, Prof. Dr. Corbelo Alfonso (AT)
• Departament de Psicologia clínica i de la salut // Universidad Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB) // Dr. Heidrun Panhofer
• Chair of Medical Theory, Integrative and Anthroposophic Medicine, Institute of Psychology // Witten/Herdecke University // Prof. Dr. med. David Martin, Prof. Dr. em. Peter Heusser, Prof. Dr. Arndt Büssing; Prof. Dr. Friedrich Edelhäuser, Prof. Dr. Thomas Ostermann, among others
• Karl Jaspers Chair, Phenomenological Psychopathology // Heidelberg University // Prof. Dr. Dr. Thomas Fuchs
• Institute of Psychology // Heidelberg University // Prof. Dr. Sabina Pauen, Prof. Dr. Sven Barnow, Prof. Dr. Monika Sieverding, Prof. Dr. Joachim Funke, Prof. Dr. Birgit Spinat, Prof. Dr. Dirk Hagemann, Prof. Dr. Klaus Fiedler
• IWR Robotics Department // Heidelberg University // Prof. Dr. Katja Mombaur
• Institute of Art Therapy and Research // University of the Arts in Social Fields (HKS) Ottersberg // Prof. Dr. Gabriele Schmidt
• University Institute for Creative Arts Therapies // Nürtingen University of Applied Sciences for Environment and Social Affairs // Prof. Dr. Constanze Schulze (AT), Prof. Dr. Johannes Junker (DT)
• Faculty of Therapy Sciences // SRH University Heidelberg // Prof. Dr. Thomas Hillecke, Prof. Dr. Alexander Wormit, Prof. Dr. Elizabeth Manders
• Faculty of Social and Legal Sciences // SRH University Heidelberg // Prof. Dr. Barbara Wolf, Prof. Dr. Bettina Wuttig, Prof. Dr. Andres Stefanowski
• Cooperations with non-university research institutions: Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics, Frankfurt, Fraunhofer Institute Stuttgart

Clinical Cooperations

• CIO – Center for Integrative Oncology // Bonn University Hospital // Prof. Dr. Ingo Schmidt-Wolf // M. Neumann // V. Wilberg
• University Medicine Essen // Dr. Susann Kobus
• Clinic and Polyclinic for Palliative Medicine // Bonn University Hospital // Prof. Dr. Lukas Radbruch
• Malteser Hospital Seliger Gerhard Bonn/Rhein-Sieg // Bonn University Hospital // Prof. Dr. Lukas Radbruch
• Psychiatric University Hospital // Heidelberg University Hospital // Prof. Dr. Dr. Thomas Fuchs, Prof. Dr. Sabine Herpertz
• Institute of Medical Psychology // Heidelberg University Hospital // Prof. Dr. Beate Ditzen
• Clinic and Polyclinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy // University Hospital Cologne // Prof. Dr. Gert Lehmkuhl, Prof. Dr. Edgar Schömig
• Centre for Social Psychiatry // Rehbergpark, Herborn // Prof. Dr. Matthias Wildermuth
• LVR Clinic Düsseldorf // Düsseldorf University Hospital // Creative Therapy House, Dr. Peter Hoffmann // Medical Director, Prof. Dr. Eva Meisenzahl-Lechner
• LVR Clinic Bonn // Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Trauma Outpatient Clinic // Dr. Stefan Reichelt // Adult Psychiatry, Jana Berg, M.A.
• Arlesheim Clinic // Prof. Dr. med. Matthias Kröz

2023-2024
Neuroscience Meets Dance in Therapy
Responsible: Prof. Dr. Sabine C. Koch
PIs: Vicky Karkou, Valentina Charuzzo, Stergios Makris
Cooperation with: Corinne Jola, Guido Orgs, Bettina Bläsing, Rainbow Ho, Hod Orkibi, Felicity Baker
Funding: AHRC (UK)

2021-2022
The Pop-Up Institute. Reducing Stigma by Means of Creative Arts Therapies.
Together with: Kerstin Schoch (HKS Ottersberg)
Responsible: Lily Martin
Third-party funding: Volkswagen Foundation

2020-2021
Art Therapy in Oncology
Together with: Prof. Dr. I. Schmidt-Wolf (Bonn University Hospital)
Responsible: Prof. H. Gruber, Prof. S. Koch
Third-party funding: “Spendenparlament Bonn”

Participants in the successful art study present their work at CIO Bonn. You can watch the video here.

2019-2020
Digital Assessment in Dance Movement Therapy
Together with: Dr. K. Dunphy, Prof. F. Baker (University of Melbourne)
Responsible: Prof. S. Koch
Third-party funding:  DAAD

Since 2018
Documentation and commentary on the first eurythmy therapy treatments at the clinical-therapeutic institute in Arlesheim
Together with: Prof. Annette Weißkircher,  Dr. med. Matthias Girke    (Head of Section, Medical Section at the Goetheanum, Switzerland), M.A. Rob Schapink and M.A. Norman Kingeter  (Arlesheim Clinics)
Responsible: Prof. Annette Weißkircher
Third-party funding: Christophorus Foundation, Heileurythmie Foundation, Anthroposophical Society Germany, Anneliese/Wilhelm zur Linden Foundation

2018-2020
EASE Grant “An embodied approach to the study of experience”, Research Network Chile, Slovenia, France, Germany on Embodiment & Neurophenomenology; REDES
Together with: Dr. María Isabel Gaete Celis (Universidad de Chile, Medicine), Prof. Dr. Michel Bitbol (CNRS, Paris), Prof. Dr. Dr. Thomas Fuchs (Uni Heidelberg), Prof. Dr. Sabine C. Koch (Alanus); Prof. Dr. Sebastjan Vörös (University of Ljubljana, Arts)
Responsible: Camila Valenzuela Moguillansky, Universidad Diego Portales, Santiago de Chile
Third-party funding: Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (CONICYT), Chile

2016-2022
Heidelberg Center for Motion Research (HCMR) – Cooperative interdisciplinary research laboratory for movement studies;
Responsible: Prof. Dr. Katja Mombaur, Robotics, Institute for Scientific Computing (Heidelberg University); Coop.: Prof. Dr. Sabine Koch;
Third-party funding: Zeiss Foundation

Selected project descriptions (related to the research projects)

Digital Assessment in Dance Movement Therapy
In an intensive and fruitful collaboration with the University of Melbourne, within the framework of the DAAD-funded research project “Digital Assessment in Dance Movement Therapy”, we worked on the digitalisation of our assessment tools. One main aim of the project was the further development of a mobile app for documenting and evaluating movement therapy interventions and for the systematic collection of relevant data from movement therapy sessions. The project included a validation study of the participatory Outcome Framework (a generic questionnaire integrated into the app), as well as studies extending the application to other creative arts therapies. An article on the app won the ADTA Research Award 2019 in the USA.

Art Therapy in Oncology
In 2019, the cooperative research project Art Therapy in Oncology was developed at Bonn University Hospital / Center for Integrated Oncology (CIO; Prof. Dr. Ingo Schmidt-Wolf). People diagnosed with advanced-stage cancer are often under considerable strain. In addition to the physical burden of chemotherapy, the psychological burden in particular is substantial. The certified cancer centre “CIO Bonn” already offers patients support from psycho-oncologists. The experiences psycho-oncologists have had in many conversations with patients show that sometimes “words simply fail” when it comes to communicating and processing thoughts and feelings. That is why the UKB cancer centre offers patients the opportunity to take part in art therapy. The programme was developed jointly with the RIArT research institute and structurally implemented. It is continuously evaluated. The project is financially supported by “Spendenparlament Bonn”. The project began in January 2020 and, after a Covid-19-related interruption, resumed in the summer. Registrations via: CIO@ukbonn.de

International Research Alliance

The International Research Alliance of the NYU Creative Arts Therapies Consortium, under the leadership of New York University (Dr. N. Sajnani; https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/catconsortium/international-research-alliance), has existed since 2018 and is home to universities and research institutes that offer doctoral training across the creative arts therapies.
Members are:

• New York University (NYU Steinhardt)
• Alanus University Bonn
• University of Haifa
• The University of Melbourne
• Lesley University
• Drexel University
• Edge Hill University
• University of Hongkong

In addition to cooperation and support for early-career researchers with regard to PhD candidates, there are research and publication collaborations among individual members and joint work on a WHO report on the global state of evidence for creative arts therapies. The following cooperative project may be cited as an example:

International cooperation on research into active factors

At the ECArTE Conference 2019 in Alcalá de Henares (European Consortium of Creative Arts Therapies Educators), and at a pre-conference of the International Doctoral Consortium at the Madrid branch of New York University (NYU), research into active factors in creative arts therapies was identified as a current and important topic. Under the coordination of Alanus (RIArT), the University of Haifa, the University of Melbourne, Lesley University, and the University of Amsterdam, a group was formed that will first produce a systematic review of empirical findings on research into active factors across all creative arts therapies (including poetry therapy), in order to provide an overview of research findings and research gaps. Based on this review, primary studies and further secondary studies can then be planned.  The group includes some of the leading researchers in the field of creative arts therapies (core group: Hod Orkibi (U Haifa), Felicity Baker (U Melbourne), Sabine C. Koch (Alanus University), Rebecca Zarate (Lesley University), and Martina DeWitte (U Amsterdam)). In 2021, the participating researchers produced a scoping review on change factors in creative arts therapies (see the special issue on Creative Arts Therapies in Frontiers in Psychology). For collaboration on the active factors project, the network of the International Research Alliance of the NYU CAT Consortium was expanded to include the University of Hong Kong (Prof. Dr. Rainbow Ho).

GMS Journal of Arts Therapies  –
Journal of Art-, Music-, Dance-, Drama- and Poetry-Therapy

The Scientific Professional Society for Creative Arts Therapies (WFKT) publishes the open-access online journal GMS Journal of Arts Therapies (JAT) on the web platform of German Medical Science (GMS). The first issue of the online journal was published in 2019. You will find further information on content and submissions on the journal’s website. ISSN: 2629-3366, OCLC number: 1107349490, registration here.

Research articles and review articles, project reports, short contributions, as well as discussion papers and comments on creative arts therapies, art in medicine and psychotherapy, and art and health from the full spectrum of evidence-based medicine methods may be submitted. In addition to quantitative research, research into active factors, observational studies, qualitative research, and case studies, contributions from artistic and arts-based research are also welcome. We support participatory and ethically reflective research principles. Publications are accepted in English and German and must include an English abstract.

The RIArT research colloquium invites researchers and therapists from the creative arts therapies on a monthly basis to present their work on a specific topic. This is followed by a lively discussion that promotes professional exchange and the joint further development of ideas.

2026

03.2026 // Clara Cornaro, Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences, Towards an Intervention Study: Dance Movement Therapy with People Living with Dementia and Their Carers (in English)
02.2026 // Callie Arnold, Dance Movement Therapist, Ecosystem Awareness of Intersectional Empowerment in Dance Performance Projects with People Experiencing Depression
01.2026 // Anna Viktoria Rico Gómez, Art Therapist, The Speaking Back – Invitation to Inner Reflection: An Intervention for Art-Therapeutic Biographical Work

2025

12.2025 // Dr. Eden Rose Champagne, Dance Movement Therapist, Dance/Movement Therapy Program for Dementia Caregiver Resilience – Employing the Model of Embodied Aesthetics in a DMT Context (in English)
11.2025 // Jun.-Prof. Dr. Maya Halacheva-Trapp, Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences, Participation through Aesthetic Education. A Participatory Research Project in the Field of Inclusive Extracurricular Dance Programmes
10.2025 // Prof. Dr. Matthew Pelowski, University of Vienna, Austria, (How) Can Art Make a Difference for our Attitudes, Bodies, and Brains? – The ARTIS Lab (in English)
07.2025 // Dr. Renate Oepen and Prof. Corinne Roy, Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences, Online Art Therapy – Results of a Systematic Review
04.2025 // Mei Ling Tan, M.A., Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences, The role of the voice and group singing in music therapy (in English)
02.2025 // Dr. Katharina Gerlach, Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences, Intuition in Eurythmy Therapy Dr. Katharina Gerlach reported on her research into intuition based on the theories of Rudolf Steiner

2024

12.2024 // Dr. Lily Martin  Motion Markers of Schizophrenia (Dissertation)
11.2024 // Prof. Dr. Johannes Wagemann & Dr. Sarah Starosky, Working with Clay and the Phenomenological Method
10.2024 // Dr. Katharina Gerlach, Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences, Vademecum Eurythmy Therapy
07.2024 // Dr. Shoshi Keisari and Ronen Kowalsky, University of Haifa, Israel, The potential of mirroring and playback theatre
06.2024 // Dr. Girija Kaimal, Drexel University, USA, Art Therapy in Times of Upheaval
05.2024 // Dr. Felicity A. Baker, University of Melbourne, Australia, Music Therapy for Dementia, Results from the MIDDEL-Project and the Homesite Study
03.2024 // Prof. Dr. Stefan Willich, Charité Berlin, Arts in Medicine – tradition, evidence, perspectives
02.2024 // Dr. Shoshi Kaisari, Drama Therapy, University of Haifa, Drama Therapy in Nursing Homes
01.2024 // Dr. Joanna Czemanski-Cohen, Art Therapy, University of Haifa, Effects and Therapeutic Factors of Art Therapy in Cancer Care

• Symposium: Art-based Research – Arts-based Research Approaches and Creative Arts Therapies (09.11.2018)