ABSTRACT
Background COVID-19 is both a global health emergency and a major psychological crisis event, and its negative effects on college students' mental health continue to persist after more than three years. Previous studies[1, 2] suggest that the overall psychological health status of students in colleges has been poor during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially among those vulnerable to emotional problems. Interventions are needed to improve the psychological health of college students. This study was designed to determine the potential role of art brut therapy as a positive psychological health approach for university students. Methods A sample of university students (n = 120) will be recruited and assigned to an Offline Art Brut Group (OFABG), Online Art Brut Group (OABG), or a control group (CG) with no intervention. Prior to inclusion in the Time 1 assessment, potential subjects will be screened for eligibility requirements via an online survey. Once recruited, participants will finish the Time 1 assessment; then, the two experimental groups will receive art brut therapy once a week for 16 weeks. After the 16-week intervention, subjects will complete the Time 2 assessment. Every assessment will include both psychological and physiological measures. Symptom Checklists 90 (SCL-90) and the Positive Affect and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS) will be used to measure the psychological effects of art brut therapy in college students, while the level of cortisol in saliva samples and interleukin 6 (IL-6) in blood samples will be used to examine the physiological effects. Discussion This study will articulate the impact of art brut therapy on both psychological conditions and physiological markers associated with emotions, and it will also explore the feasibility and effectiveness of online art brut therapy. The results will determine the efficacy of a low-cost, easy-to-implement, accessible and engaging psychological health intervention for university students with emotional challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trial registration Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR2200062802, August 19th, 2022.