Research
Current Research
- Jenny Elliott – Dancer in Residence with South & East Belfast
Trust-:
PhD in Evaluation of the Benefits of Dance to Young Men with Acquired Brain Injuries. (Funded by Arts Care and South and East Belfast Trust)
Completed Research
- Lorna Hastings - Director of Arts Care: An MA in Cultural Management, with dissertation looking at background to arts and health and an evaluation framework.
- Dreams Project: Mater Hospital; a 3-year study with 5 groups looking into the benefits of Arts activities. (Funded jointly by Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Mater Hospital and Arts Care). For further information please contact Arts Care Offices at 2 Franklin Street, Belfast BT2 8DQ Tel: 0044 (0) 28 9053 5639 Email: artscare@cinni.org
Arts Care's goal is to bring Art to the community, and specifically to
make it more accessible to those members of the community to whom it is
usually inaccessible.
Ultimately Arts Care is offering an opportunity to find an alternative mode
of expression or simply to take part as a hobby. Arts Care also aims to
improve the quality of life of participants and to allow the staff and residents
of health care facilities to make a contribution to their immediate environment
and thereby take ownership of it.
However, many artists and participants have noted additional benefits, including
some therapeutic qualities of programmes. Embarking on a project, independently
or collaboratively, can be a journey of self-discovery and renewal for participants.
It can provide an opportunity to work through and express negative emotions
and experiences, and even to transform them into positive and creative outlets.
A lowering of stress levels, increased confidence and improved social skills are among the most common
benefits observed by those who have had experience of an Arts Care project.