Download the thesis - South Eastern Centre Against Sexual Assault

has too large a focus on measurable outcomes. White argues for the evaluation of
arts in health as a process of discovery rather than one of proof, that their success is
“predicated on [the] quality of the relationships built up between all involved in the
project” (White 2005). He argues that the artist, agency partners and participants’
voices together can best measure its outcome. Putland argues that some problems of
evaluation lie in the lack of a common language between the various sectors involved,
and that a shared language needs to evolve to reflect the inherent interests and values
of both the art and health sectors (267). Research and frameworks to better evaluate
art and wellbeing and arts and health are nonetheless being developed. In Australia a
number of agencies, including Arts Access Australia – particularly the Western
Australian branch DADAA (Disability in the Arts Disadvantage in the Arts Australia) –
and VicHealth and the Cultural Development Network Melbourne have made, and are
making, significant contributions to the frequently cited problem of finding appropriate
models of evaluation to quantify the critical role the arts play beyond the role of the
cultural product.
In the shadow of trauma, loss and grief
There is a threshold of density of experience; when passed, that
experience is widely referred to as a trauma or traumatic.
The words “trauma” and “traumatic” are widely used and understood to describe
Jay Winter 4
stressful or confronting experiences and feelings such as fear, shock, loss and grief
associated with these experiences. Accidents, medical emergencies and natural
disasters can all be considered traumatic events. However, in this thesis I focus on
psychological trauma, described by Judith Lewis Herman as “an affliction of the
powerless. A person … rendered helpless by overwhelming force which cannot be
overcome, no matter what action the victim might take”, placing particular attention on
the traumatic experience of sexual assault/abuse (33).
Trauma leaves distinct imprints on survivors, differentiating it from other challenging or
4 War and Remembrance in the Twentieth Century (15).
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