Abstract
This study investigated the use of the Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale (FEATS) with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients. Eighty-eight persons with either relapsing-remitting or progressive type MS drew a Person Picking an Apple from a Tree, and completed a Beck Depression Inventory-Fast Screen (BDI-FS). FEATS scores were compared to BDI-FS scores and across disease type. Statistically significant results were found when comparing FEATS scores in regard to disease type, with overall FEATS scores (p = .014), indicating graphic elements linked to depression present in the drawings of patients with progressive type MS. The relationship between FEATS scores and the BDI-FS was not significant. Further research is needed, as this was the first study of the FEATS with the MS population.
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Notes on contributors
Tamara Shella
Tamara Shella, PhD, ATR-BC, is the art therapy manager for the Cleveland Clinic Arts and Medicine Institute in Cleveland, OH. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to the author at [email protected]