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Exploring Zentangle as a virtual mindfulness-based art intervention for people with serious mental illness.

Marko Stojcevski, Amy Cheung, Victor Agwu, Xiaoduo Fan

Frontiers in Psychiatry 2023 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1260937 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Pilot study Peer reviewed
Sample size 6
Population People with serious mental illness (SMI)
Intervention Zentangle
Duration 8-week program, with assessments up to 5 weeks post-intervention
Measures Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Scale (Q-LES-Q-SF)
Topics Meditation
Keywords Zentangle Art therapy Creative arts Mindfulness-based art intervention
Key points The authors report that an 8-week Zentangle program was associated with reduced psychiatric symptoms on the BPRS (40.7 to 33.7 from baseline to 5-week post-intervention) and increased mindful attention on the MAAS (3.5 to 4.2 between 1- and 5-week post-intervention) in six participants with serious mental illness. They suggest Zentangle may encourage gratitude and self-accomplishment, counteracting self-criticism and failure.

Abstract

Zentangle is an emerging art intervention that incorporates mindfulness into creative drawing. This pilot study explored Zentangle as a novel adjunct treatment for people with serious mental illness (SMI). Six participants with SMI completed an 8-week Zentangle program. Psychiatric outcomes were evaluated using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Scale (Q-LES-Q-SF). A focus group was conducted to better understand the experiences of the participants. A significant reduction in psychiatric symptoms was observed as measured by the total score on the BPRS between baseline and 5-week post-intervention (40.7 ± 9.1 vs. 33.7 ± 8.9, mean ± SD, p = 0.02). Participants also showed a significant increase in mindful attention using the average score on the MAAS between 1- and 5-week post-intervention (3.5 ± 0.4 vs. 4.2 ± 0.7, mean ± SD, p = 0.04). Four themes were generated from the focus group: (1) approaching mindfulness through Zentangle; (2) power of uncomplicated art creation; (3) understanding the value of self-appreciation; and (4) fostering a positive environment. Our preliminary data suggest that the use of Zentangle for participants with SMI may have a positive impact on overall psychiatric symptoms and mindfulness. Moreover, the Zentangle Method encourages positive emotions like gratitude and self-accomplishment to counteract negative feelings of self-criticism and failure in participants.

Comparable studies

Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients 2003 Pre-post intervention study n = 59
Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample 2010 Pre-post intervention study
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students 2003 Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study n = 302
Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls 2011 Controlled trial with wait-list control group n = 60
The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents 2011 Within-group waitlist controlled trial n = 22

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