Research at KATI
One of the graduation requirements for the Kutenai Art Therapy Institute Diploma is to complete a final research project, which can be either an academic thesis or a self-designed capstone project. Research in art therapy is premised on a fundamental commitment to advancing knowledge and understanding the value, efficacy, and legitimacy of art therapy in the helping professions. Publishing research is important for raising the profile of the art therapy profession in general. In addition, research can support the therapist/researcher’s basic desire for new knowledge and understanding in the field of art therapy. Individual participants may benefit from being involved with art therapy: either the discovery of information concerning their own welfare or the satisfaction of contributing to society through research. Furthermore, groups, communities, and the broader society can benefit when research expands awareness of art therapy and increases accessibility to art therapy services.
At KATI, students are taught a range of qualitative methodologies that are ethically and theoretically aligned with art therapy practices. Thesis projects follow a rigorous methodology, such as: art-based inquiry, hermeneutic phenomenology, narrative approaches, autoethnography, Indigenous methodologies, critical anti-oppressive research, or action research. Capstone projects allow students the opportunity to design a personal, art-based inquiry or a practical offering for the profession. After the first year in the program, students can submit a proposal to the KATI Research Ethics Committee. They are supported to propose a project that is in alignment with their values, their worldview about knowledge, their emerging personal approach to art therapy, and their future career aspirations.
All research projects are designed to demonstrate:
Professionalism in art therapy practice
The integration of therapeutic skills in the practice of art therapy
The value of art in enhancing quality of life
The integration of research skills that are relevant to art therapy practice.
Writing a thesis requires the student to:
Research, evaluate, and contribute to theoretical knowledge about a topic within the field of art therapy
Synthesize knowledge acquired and apply these learnings in the development, execution, and analysis of a research study relevant to art therapy practice
Combine therapeutic skills and research skills into an ethical, academically rigorous project
Demonstrate ability to write with academic integrity and rigour following APA or IWM standards for research papers.
A capstone project can have a specifically clinical, community, artistic, or practical focus. Designing a capstone requires the student to:
Practice, evaluate, and contribute to practical knowledge that informs the profession of art therapy
Synthesize knowledge acquired and apply these learnings to a self-designed project that is executed and relevant to art therapy practice
Engage in a personal or collective art-based inquiry, clinical intervention, community project, program design, or practical application in therapeutic practice
Self-design a project that is creative and can be archived, but does not rely on a traditional academic format.
Research Ethics
All research conducted at the institute is overseen and approved by the Research Chair and the KATI Research Ethics Committee to ensure that it complies with the Canadian Art Therapy Association (CATA-ACAT) Standards of Practice. Art Therapists and art therapy students are expected to act with integrity in relation to colleagues in art therapy and allied professions. They carry out research in an ethical manner and participate in activities which advance the goals of the profession of Art Therapy.
In addition to institute policies and CATA-ACAT Standards, KATI research is informed by the Tri-Council Policy Statement on Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans, which is a publicly funded and evaluated set of policies that are published by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (2022). The policy statement can be read here: https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/policy-politique_tcps2-eptc2_2022.html
Cultural Safety and Indigenous Research
As stated in our Groundwater commitment, KATI is committed to upholding the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Calls to Action as outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. We celebrate the richness and potency that can arise in collaboration between the field of expressive arts therapy and Indigenous knowledge, worldviews, and practices.
The KATI Research Ethics Committee acknowledges that there are additional complexities in conducting ethical research with Indigenous peoples and communities. Historically, and presently, research in Canada has caused harm and continues to risk causing more harm to Indigenous peoples. At KATI, all efforts will be made to minimize future harm; the focus will be to facilitate research that supports efforts in decolonization and reconciliation while honoring and welcoming Indigenous ways of healing, teaching, knowing, and being.
The Ethics Committee participates in KATI’s ongoing process in decolonizing course curricula through peer review in response to student and faculty feedback, cultural protocols, and Indigenous research. In addition, the Research Ethics Committee seeks consultation from Indigenous knowledge keepers, faculty, research advisors, and consultants to support the decolonization of research at KATI. When feasible, appropriate Indigenous advisors and readers will be engaged to support Indigenous students on their research projects. Students may propose to write their final research paper using the Indigenous Writing Method (IWM) instead of following APA formatting. Resources will be provided to learn IWM.
The Ethics Committee encourages and supports student initiatives in practice and research to develop art therapy programming that supports Indigenous healing and cultural reclamation. For any students who are proposing to conduct research with Indigenous participants and communities, it is important to review “Chapter 9: Research Involving the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples of Canada” in the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (2022).
Since Indigenous folks are not the only peoples impacted by colonialism, systemic oppression, and harmful research/therapeutic practices, it is important that all research conducted at KATI strives for cultural safety, by attending to the social location of the researcher, the participants, and the topic under study. The KATI Research Ethics Committee reviews all research proposals through an anti-oppressive lens.
Research Data Management
Ethical practices in research include care and attention to the data management practices of all researchers involved in conducting research. KATI approves research that complies with the Tri-Council Policy Statement on Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans and the Canadian Art Therapy Association Standards of Practice.
Read our Research Data Management Strategy
The Research Team at KATI
The Research Ethics Committee for the 2024-2025 school year is comprised of: Monica Carpendale, Martine Bédard, Will Parker, and the Research Chair Nicole Le Bihan. All research proposals are reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee. Several faculty, supervisors and adjunct faculty are available for thesis and capstone advising. Professional scope of practice and research interests of the research advisors include: eco art therapy and land-based healing practices, art-based inquiry, poetic inquiry, art therapy for clients across all developmental stages, art therapy for trauma, spiritually-informed art therapy, post-session art, social justice and anti-oppressive practices, Indigenous methodologies, feminist art therapy, art therapy with seniors, art therapy with diverse-abilities and community-based art. Reviewing the abstracts of the completed projects by KATI students provides a sense of what is possible at KATI. We are always interested in identifying gaps in the literature and expanding the landscape of art therapy, so we encourage students to follow their passions and bring forward innovative ways of researching and practicing art therapy.