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Introduction
Full-text copies of select research papers by students having completed our courses of study are available for downloading from this page
(click on the icon or mouse-over for abstract text).
All papers listed are considered to be of a standard exemplifying the quality of excellence we attempt to pursue here at MIECAT.
The Papers
This research evolved from my consistent interest in the acknowledgement and value of intuition in creative arts therapy, and my desire to be authentic,
spontaneous and intuitive in my professional practice. I chose to form an arts-based inquiry that explored how my intuition informed and inspired my
creative arts therapy practice, as well as investigated intuition as a valid mode of knowing for both myself and my clients.
As my research developed, it became evident that my most powerful and enduring form of inquiry was art-making. My instruction to myself for the duration
of the project was, “Make the art first. Talk later. All the essences that need to be expressed will come out in the making.” By following my
natural way of meaning making, I created an arts-based research project, in which the creative process was the major focal point for generating data. I was
also guided by the MIECAT form of inquiry, which values experiential, multi-modal knowing, and a focus on the content being embedded in the process.
As a result of fifteen months of arts-based research, I produced an exhibition of the artwork that was the most relevant to my topic, in addition to the
exegesis. Having an exhibition was most appropriate to the project, not only because it remained faithful to the creative nature of my inquiry, but also
because it allowed for the opportunity for others to experience this research in both a visual and written form.
In the exegesis are the results of my research, both in the written form of a research paper, as well as in visual documentation of the artwork and the
resulting exhibition.
Berlingieri, J. (2006) A gathering of small knowings: An artistic inquiry into the experience of using intuition in Creative Arts Therapy, M.A. Supervision
In this paper I present a research inquiry into the experience of improvising in a small
group. This group, in which I had been a participant, had been improvising together each week for just
over one year prior to this inquiry. Our improvisations had incorporated the use of movement, vocalized
sound and text.
The initial data for this inquiry was developed when the research participants (the
improvisers) reflected on the question “what was your experience of improvising in the group
today?”. This reflection took place during a forty-five minute period immediately following
an improvisation and was in the form of talking whilst drawing together with crayons on a shared
single sheet of paper.
The data was gathered during this form of reflection following three consecutive improvisations. These
initial talking-drawing reflections provided the material on which a further four reflective
activities were carried out over the next three months. These activities were in the form of a
‘dialogue’ between individual participants and the researcher, the ‘language’
of the dialogue including the expressive modes of drawing, writing, poetry, and collage.
Consequently, seven independent streams of text (one from each of the seven participants) developed
from the dialogues. In the latter part of the inquiry these texts were reviewed by the researcher to
identify what might be understood about both the content of the inquiry, ‘the experience of
improvising’ and the context of the inquiry, ‘the application of MIECAT procedures’.
This paper is the documenting of this inquiry — commencing with the improvisation and finishing with
the researcher’s reflections.
Jeynes, K. (2006) The possibilities of the moment: An inquiry into the
experience of improvising in a small group, M.A. Supervision