Table of Contents
What is creative counseling?
Creative therapy is a type of therapy that uses non-verbal expression like art or music as a means to communicate our inner world. Finding clarity in your thoughts can often be difficult using words alone, so creative therapy can help you to communicate your inner experience and what you’re feeling in other ways. Being creative can increase positive emotions, reduce depressive symptoms and anxiety, and improve the function of our immune systems. Research findings indicate that creativity helps in promoting divergent thinking – thinking about many ways to solve a problem. Self-confidence and greater self-knowledge are byproducts of creativity that can help you feel comfortable in a variety of situations and adapt to challenges and stressors. It unblocks old patterns or habits of thinking. It allows for non-linear thinking. Creativity enables empathy. Creativity connects us to ourselves. As an artist, your job depends on your creativity. And, when you feel like your creativity is waning, the pressure can start to build. In moments when you can’t feel the ideas coming to you, it can lead to a cycle of inaction.
What is creativity in guidance and counselling?
Creativity is a skill that every counselling professional must possess in order to be effective counsellors. Creativity is the ability to produce work that is both novel (i.e., original or unexpected) and appropriate (i.e., useful or meets task constraints) (Sternberg & Lubart, 1995). Creativity skills, also known as creative thinking skills, essentially means being able to come up with something new. It means looking at things in a new way. And these abilities are really important for the workplace — no matter what job you end up doing. In fact, they’re one of the key employability skills you need. A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, and composition. Creativity is defined by noted psychologist John R. Hayes as, “the potential of persons to produce creative works whether or not they have produced any work as yet.” Throughout his research process, he has come to break creativity into four types: Deliberate and cognitive. Deliberate and emotional. Spontaneous and cognitive. The 5 A’s framework—actor, action, artifact, audience, affordances—is grounded in current literature from sociocultural and ecological psychology as well as theories of the distributed mind and tries to achieve a more comprehensive and unitary perspective on creativity.
What does creative approaches of counselling include?
Creative therapy uses art forms such as dance, drawing, or music to help treat certain mental conditions especially the emotional conditions. It is the trained therapists who use creative therapy in helping people who do experience a subtle range of the mental, emotional, and sometimes even physical issues. Creativity is a skill that can be learned, refined, and improved. It’s not something you either have or don’t have – it’s like any other skill in life: The more you practice it, the better you get at it. The key to creativity is figuring out what works for you- finding your own process and then mastering it. At its core, creative thinking is intentionally gaining new insights and different ideas through existing information. Often, creative thought involves tapping into different styles of thinking and examining information from different viewpoints to see new patterns. Anyone can foster a creative mind with some practice! Creatives are often known as problem solvers, people who can look at any issue and come up with a great solution. They are able to face challenges more easily, with flexibility and innovative thinking. Creative problem solving can turn any problem into a solution, no matter what the topic. Psychodynamic Counseling is probably the most well-known counseling approach. Rooted in Freudian theory, this type of counseling involves building strong therapist–client alliances. The goal is to aid clients in developing the psychological tools needed to deal with complicated feelings and situations. Creative activities like drama, music, dance, art and craft are great for learning and development in these years. They can help preschoolers: develop imagination and creativity.
What is creative in psychology?
n. the ability to produce or develop original work, theories, techniques, or thoughts. A creative individual typically displays originality, imagination, and expressiveness. creativity, the ability to make or otherwise bring into existence something new, whether a new solution to a problem, a new method or device, or a new artistic object or form. Examples of creative thinking skills include: problem solving, writing, visual art, communication skills, and open-mindedness. A Creative Task can be any creative activity that will facilitate insight or change. There are both physical and mental benefits from creating art, expressing yourself in a creative way. Reduction in stress and anxiety; increases in positive emotions. Reductions in distress and negative emotions. It’s the emotional intensity of happiness, anger, sadness, and so on, that provides the impetus for creativity. Creativity skills are essential for problem-solving, developing ideas, improving productivity and viewing challenges from a new perspective. They can also lead to higher job satisfaction and low workplace stress. Learning how to develop these skills can support career growth and development for professionals.
Why is creativity important in counseling?
Why creative counseling is helpful. Creativity helps clients problem solve through the experience of expressing emotions which, therefore, allows clients to be more in tune with themselves. By expressing emotion through the creative process, you are representing and processing your emotions. A creative act such as crafting can help focus the mind, and has even been compared to meditation due to its calming effects on the brain and body. Even just gardening or sewing releases dopamine, a natural anti-depressant. Creativity reduces anxiety, depression, and stress… And it can also help you process trauma. Counseling is a collaborative effort between the counselor and client. Professional counselors help clients identify goals and potential solutions to problems which cause emotional turmoil; seek to improve communication and coping skills; strengthen self-esteem; and promote behavior change and optimal mental health. Creativity is something that you can turn on at will — just like a light switch. All you need are the four essential elements of Creativity: Focus, People, Tools and Time. Creativity skills, also known as creative thinking skills, essentially means being able to come up with something new. It means looking at things in a new way. And these abilities are really important for the workplace — no matter what job you end up doing. In fact, they’re one of the key employability skills you need.
What are creative therapeutic activities?
Creative and therapeutic activities: arts, craft and performing arts: e.g. drawing, painting, photography, knitting, sewing, embroidery, tapestry, drama, singing, music. Creative techniques in counseling can include imagery, visual arts, literature, drama, play and humor, music, dance, and movement (Gladding,2005).