Perceived effects of drama therapy in people diagnosed with personality disorders: A qualitative study

Arts and psychomotor therapies are often part of the multidisciplinary treatment for people diagnosed with Personality Disorders (PDs). Drama therapy is aimed at promoting emotion regulation and strengthening of interpersonal skills. The added value of drama therapy has not been sufficiently examined and available studies only provide indirect client reports. Hence, we focus on what people with PDs perceive as effects of drama therapy. This qualitative study followed the Grounded Theory Approach utilising indepth, semi-structured interviews in a natural drama therapy context. Interviews were held with 19 people diagnosed with PDs, who were purposefully sampled. They were recruited from five treatment centres, with five drama therapists involved. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using a three-step approach: open, axial, and selective coding. Open coding resulted in 93 codes. In the coding process, four overarching themes came to the fore: allowing playfulness and its inherent benefits, connecting the inner and outer emotional world, understanding of maladaptive coping styles, and intrapersonal and interpersonal behavior change. The perceived effects as reported by people diagnosed with PDs provide information about what drama therapy means to them, in their daily lives and which aspects of the treatment were most valuable to them. This study contributes to the necessary underpinning of drama therapy.