Research has shown that the transition from childhood to adolescence (pre-adolescence) is a period of time with increased psychological problems, especially for girls (Moksnes & Espnes, 2012). Self-esteem begins to drop in girls in pre-adolescence and further declines in adolescence (Hartz & Thick, 2005). Latina pre-adolescents face even more challenges to their self-esteem. Physical appearance is a major factor to self-esteem, especially for girls and women. Females in particular, who establish self-esteem evaluations solely on physical appearance are especially at risk for low self-esteem. Low self-esteem has been linked to a variety of psychological problems including eating disorders and body dissatisfaction. The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate if narrative art therapy in a group setting would increase the self-esteem of Latina pre-adolescent girls (ages 10-12). It was anticipated the process of creating art and sharing it with peers would empower participants, increase self-awareness, increase confidence, and foster growth and support. It was hypothesized that after five weeks of narrative art therapy in a group setting the self-esteem of a group of Latina pre-adolescent girls would increase as measured by the Self-Perception Profile for Children (Harter, 2012). Participant’s artwork and group discussions were also analyzed to show increased creativity and support amongst the group members.
","abstract_html":"<p>Research has shown that the transition from childhood to adolescence (pre-adolescence) is a period of time with increased psychological problems, especially for girls (Moksnes & Espnes, 2012). Self-esteem begins to drop in girls in pre-adolescence and further declines in adolescence (Hartz & Thick, 2005). Latina pre-adolescents face even more challenges to their self-esteem. Physical appearance is a major factor to self-esteem, especially for girls and women. Females in particular, who establish self-esteem evaluations solely on physical appearance are especially at risk for low self-esteem. Low self-esteem has been linked to a variety of psychological problems including eating disorders and body dissatisfaction. The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate if narrative art therapy in a group setting would increase the self-esteem of Latina pre-adolescent girls (ages 10-12). It was anticipated the process of creating art and sharing it with peers would empower participants, increase self-awareness, increase confidence, and foster growth and support. It was hypothesized that after five weeks of narrative art therapy in a group setting the self-esteem of a group of Latina pre-adolescent girls would increase as measured by the Self-Perception Profile for Children (Harter, 2012). Participant’s artwork and group discussions were also analyzed to show increased creativity and support amongst the group members.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Barron, Amy"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy","degree_level":"Master's Thesis","degree_discipline":"Art Therapy","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Jennifer Myers, PsyD, ATR-BC,","Amy Backos, PhD, ATR-BC"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2016,"date_issued":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:04:51Z","subjects":["Art Therapy","Self-Esteem","LatinX","Pre-Adolescent Girls","Body Image","Narrative Theory","Art and Design","Counseling Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholar.dominican.edu/art-therapy-electronic-theses-2015-2021/2","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Jennifer Myers, PsyD, ATR-BC,","Amy Backos, PhD, ATR-BC"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Barron, Amy"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2021-10-13T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Art Therapy"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Master's Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Art Therapy","Self-Esteem","LatinX","Pre-Adolescent Girls","Body Image","Narrative Theory","Art and Design","Counseling Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholar.dominican.edu/art-therapy-electronic-theses-2015-2021/2"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Research has shown that the transition from childhood to adolescence (pre-adolescence) is a period of time with increased psychological problems, especially for girls (Moksnes & Espnes, 2012). Self-esteem begins to drop in girls in pre-adolescence and further declines in adolescence (Hartz & Thick, 2005). Latina pre-adolescents face even more challenges to their self-esteem. Physical appearance is a major factor to self-esteem, especially for girls and women. Females in particular, who establish self-esteem evaluations solely on physical appearance are especially at risk for low self-esteem. Low self-esteem has been linked to a variety of psychological problems including eating disorders and body dissatisfaction. The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate if narrative art therapy in a group setting would increase the self-esteem of Latina pre-adolescent girls (ages 10-12). It was anticipated the process of creating art and sharing it with peers would empower participants, increase self-awareness, increase confidence, and foster growth and support. It was hypothesized that after five weeks of narrative art therapy in a group setting the self-esteem of a group of Latina pre-adolescent girls would increase as measured by the Self-Perception Profile for Children (Harter, 2012). Participant’s artwork and group discussions were also analyzed to show increased creativity and support amongst the group members.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["An art therapy approach to increase the self-esteem of Latina pre-adolescent girls using narrative therapy"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Jennifer Myers, PsyD, ATR-BC,","Amy Backos, PhD, ATR-BC"],"dc:creator":["Barron, Amy"],"dc:date.available":["2021-10-13T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Research has shown that the transition from childhood to adolescence (pre-adolescence) is a period of time with increased psychological problems, especially for girls (Moksnes & Espnes, 2012). Self-esteem begins to drop in girls in pre-adolescence and further declines in adolescence (Hartz & Thick, 2005). Latina pre-adolescents face even more challenges to their self-esteem. Physical appearance is a major factor to self-esteem, especially for girls and women. Females in particular, who establish self-esteem evaluations solely on physical appearance are especially at risk for low self-esteem. Low self-esteem has been linked to a variety of psychological problems including eating disorders and body dissatisfaction. The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate if narrative art therapy in a group setting would increase the self-esteem of Latina pre-adolescent girls (ages 10-12). It was anticipated the process of creating art and sharing it with peers would empower participants, increase self-awareness, increase confidence, and foster growth and support. It was hypothesized that after five weeks of narrative art therapy in a group setting the self-esteem of a group of Latina pre-adolescent girls would increase as measured by the Self-Perception Profile for Children (Harter, 2012). Participant’s artwork and group discussions were also analyzed to show increased creativity and support amongst the group members.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholar.dominican.edu/art-therapy-electronic-theses-2015-2021/2"],"dc:subject":["Art Therapy","Self-Esteem","LatinX","Pre-Adolescent Girls","Body Image","Narrative Theory","Art and Design","Counseling Psychology"],"dc:title":["An art therapy approach to increase the self-esteem of Latina pre-adolescent girls using narrative therapy"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Art Therapy"],"thesis:degree_level":["Master's Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:04:51Z"}