Cross-cultural Issues in Art Therapy

This article examines the conditions under which art therapy might be a culturally appropriate intervention. The aspects of art therapy and assessment that may be assimilationist or ethnocentric are identified, and alternatives are presented. Problems inherent in the cross-cultural interpretation of art are also discussed and methods that maximize interpretive validity and reliability are introduced. The characteristics of a culturally sensitive art therapist are described, while implications for the general field of art therapy are explored. Art therapy can serve as a departure from many other Western therapeutic traditions in its critical self-examination and conscientious attempts to be a progressive and ethical enterprise.