Trust me, I'm an Art Therapist: An exploration of how an understanding of epistemic trust might inform the role of art psychotherapy in an acute ward setting.

Abstract

This literature review takes a hermeneutical approach in exploring how an understanding of epistemic trust might inform the role of art psychotherapy in the acute ward setting. The review synthesizes research and theory-based texts with the aim of exploring the relationship between epistemic trust and the acute ward context, and to identify areas that could benefit from further research. The review points to three main findings. Firstly, that the acute ward setting is often experienced as challenging for patients and art therapists, with power dynamics, patient experience, and staff retention presenting chronic problems over many years. Secondly, art therapy may be uniquely well-suited to work with acutely unwell patients by offering a communicative channel beyond language, allowing greater agency over their level of engagement in therapy. Lastly, the review turns towards a criticism of epistemic trust in suggesting that it struggles to account for systemic injustices in knowledge production. The implications for art therapy practice coming from this review suggest that an important role of the ward-based art therapist is to remain sensitive to structural inequalities in acute mental health treatment and to take a critical eye towards dominant theoretical discourse. Overall, this review highlights the continued benefits of art psychotherapy in acute mental health treatment and contextualises this within a comprehensive overview of epistemic trust. Further research is needed on clarifying how this understanding could inform future art therapy practice in this setting