Relationships Between Psychology and Theatre: Mutually Beneficial Interactions — Presentation Detail — Celebration of Scholars

Instructions

Student presentations must have a faculty sponsor.

Abstracts must include a title and a description of the research, scholarship, or creative work. The description should be 150-225 words in length and constructed in a format or style appropriate for the presenter’s discipline.

The following points should be addressed within the selected format or style for the abstract:

A clear statement of the problem or question you pursued, or the scholarly goal or creative theme achieved in your work.
A brief comment about the significance or uniqueness of the work.
A clear description of the methods used to achieve the purpose or goals for the work.
A statement of the conclusions, results, outcomes, or recommendations, or if the work is still in progress, the results you expect to report at the event.

Presenter photographs should be head and shoulder shots comparable to passport photos.

Additional Information

More information is available at carthage.edu/celebration-scholars/. The following are members of the Research, Scholarship, and Creativity Committee who are eager to listen to ideas and answer questions:

Jun Wang
Kim Instenes
John Kirk
Nora Nickels
Andrew Pustina
James Ripley

Relationships Between Psychology and Theatre: Mutually Beneficial Interactions

Name: Alexa Cairo
Major: Psychology; Theatre
Hometown: Romeoville, IL
Faculty Sponsor:
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Senior thesis

Abstract

Numerous intricate relationships between theatrical elements and psychological implementations were explored. One such relationship between the two professional fields is using theatre activities as a form of therapy for abused children, patients with intellectual disorders, and people with cancer. Another is allowing people to learn experientially through role playing (especially in youth and employer settings). Finally, analyzing the psychology behind effective theatre shows how to really get inside of people -- given that the whole point of theatre is to make people feel. It is also noteworthy that theatre's thematic changes match the psychological developments and perspectives of the time. Psychological issues (concerning the types of relationships and human behaviors which many plays illustrate) were also examined. It was concluded, from thorough readings of multiple studies between the two fields, that the relationship between the fields of psychology and theatre is a mutually beneficial one, from which people can learn a great deal about themselves.

Poster file