ABSTRACT

The purpose of this Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) is to supplement the heuristic study with participant-based research to further apprehend the relationships between shame, creative self-expression, and assemblage art. This is not a clinical study and the methods are not designed as psychotherapeutic treatment. Nevertheless, the experiments in this study resemble some of the practices of art therapy. Research data consists of pre- and post-workshop questionnaires designed to determine the participants' prior shame experiences related to art making as well as the observations during and reflections after the workshop. The pre-workshop questionnaire was to establish baseline conditions, to stir the memories and imaginations of the participants, and prepare them for the types of information sought for in the study. The post-workshop questionnaire was intended to record any changes in their relationships to shame and art making. The participants also had an opportunity to add any information or reflections not explicitly asked for on the post-workshop questionnaire.