Beyond the Studio: A Mixed-Methods Approach to Exploring Art Therapy Advocacy in Indiana

Abstract

In the United States currently 10 states have either professional licenses with verbiage inclusive of art therapy or licenses that are distinctly art therapy. The states with art therapy licenses received that distinction due to art therapists who advocated on behalf of the profession, consequently shaping the perception of art therapy within their communities and states (American Art Therapy Association (AATA), 2013). In the state of Indiana there is neither an art therapy license, nor verbiage in existing legislative documentation that is inclusive of art therapy in any professional license. This research sought to understand what advocacy efforts have been conducted by AATA and the state chapter of Indiana, the Indiana Art Therapy Association (INDIATA).