7th Annual Conference of the Scientific Association of Creative Arts Therapies e.V.
Scientific Association of Creative Arts Therapies e.V. (WFKT)
14.11. - 15.11.2024, Alfter/Bonn
Welcome
Welcome to the congress publications of the 7th annual conference of the German Scientific Association for Arts Therapies (Wissenschaftliche Fachgesellschaft für Künstlerische Therapien, WFKT), which took place on Nov 14 th & 15th 2024 at the Alanus University for Arts and Social Sciences in Alfter/Bonn under the theme “Professionalization and research basis in education and practice”.
The attention to the effects of arts therapies is increasing. They have become an established component in healthcare, in psychiatry, psychosomatics and psychotherapy, as well as in areas of prevention, health promotion and parts of education. Their dynamic development is not only driven by professional and interdisciplinary discussions but is also influenced by a variety of social challenges. Arts therapies are currently faced with the task of clearly positioning their professionalization within the health policy framework.
On the one hand, the professionalization of every kind of therapy includes the transparent formulation of quality standards in education and practical work. On the other hand, there needs to be proven evidence of their effectiveness through research. From a scientific perspective, arts therapies are in close proximity to the human and health sciences. The plurality of frames of reference and research paradigms requires that researchers locate themselves in the area of tension between natural scientific, medical, social scientific and artistic research.
The annual conference 2024 was dedicated to this complex topic with a future perspective through lectures, presentations and exhibitions. Scientific and artistic research study projects were also be presented during the poster sessions. This year there was once again a pre-conference of the WFKT's “Young Researchers” to encourage students, doctoral candidates and those interested in research to engage in a lively exchange.
