An Art Therapy Program Focused on the Visual Arts: with Adolescents Intellectual Disabilities at a Specialized Center (in Tunisia) Promotes Self-Esteem

This book is based on the theoretical principles of the Tours School of Art Therapy. It describes an art therapy program focused on the visual arts for adolescents with intellectual disabilities. The program was conducted at UTAIM (Tunisian Union for Assistance to the Mentally Disabled) in Monastir, Tunisia. Intellectual disabilities can limit these adolescents' mental and social development, negatively impact their quality of life, and undermine their self-esteem. However, the visual arts can help them restore this self-esteem. They stimulate the adolescents' sensory, physical, mental, and social mechanisms. Their therapeutic use aims to improve difficulties with expression, communication, and relationships. The analysis of the three case studies highlights the development of art therapy treatment plans and the adolescents' progress over the course of the sessions. The objective of this study is to measure the impact of art therapy-with a focus on the visual arts-on the self-esteem, personal fulfillment, and relational openness of the students observed. The results obtained are promising but based on too small a sample size.