Evaluating a Single-Session Mindfulness-Based Art Therapy Doodling Intervention for Regional School Teachers

Teacher wellbeing is essential for sustainable professional practice, yet regional educators face heightened stress and limited professional development access. This study examined a single-session Mindfulness-Based Art Therapy Doodling Intervention (MBAT-DI) designed to strengthen teachers’ psychological resilience resources. Thirty-five regional teachers in Victoria, Australia participated in a two-hour online MBAT-DI workshop combining mindfulness practices with guided doodling exercises. A within-subjects design measured state mindfulness, self-compassion, and classroom-management self-efficacy. Following stable baseline scores, the intervention was associated with improvements in mindfulness, self-compassion, and classroom-management self-efficacy, with greater gains in mindfulness decentering among more experienced teachers. Overall, the findings suggest that brief mindfulness-based art therapy doodling may provide a practical, time-efficient, and accessible approach to supporting the wellbeing of regional school teachers.