How do socially prescribed community-based art workshops impact on the health and wellbeing of the women who attend them?

Donoghue, Louise (2026) How do socially prescribed community-based art workshops impact on the health and wellbeing of the women who attend them? PhD thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

Social prescribing in the UK, is a health intervention supporting mental health, long-term conditions, loneliness and isolation (Dixon and Polley, 2016; Polley et al., 2017). Emerging studies have highlighted the need for social prescribing to engage with marginalised groups to understand the causes and impacts of health inequalities, (Muhl et al., 2023; Thomson et al., 2024; Percy-Smith and Bailey, 2023), however less is known about how current practices can benefit from the perspectives of marginalised women who attend socially prescribed activities. My research addresses three separate but complementary objectives: the women's journeys to seek support in art workshops, their views on existing support, and finally, the artists' perspectives on facilitation and support. With a specific focus on the voices and experiences of marginalised women, my theoretical framework of experience (hooks, 1989b, 2001; Hill Collins, 1990), emotion (Hochschild, 1983) and empathy (Letherby and Zdrodowski, 1995; Liamputtong, 2007), values their personal stories to guide more nurturing practices in social prescribing.

Findings:
Through developing understandings of the women's journeys to seek help/barriers to seek help, my research identified through the centring of women's voices and experiences, their focus on emotional health, and more specifically the trauma and relentless pressures of their lived experiences. I demonstrate the benefits and limitations of the groups from the women's, and the artists' perspectives to offer more realistic views of the support currently available. My findings also highlight that the artists felt ill equipped to support the health and wellbeing of vulnerable women when they are trained in art (Schrag, 2018).

Conclusion:
My research adds rich detail to the narrow and generalised terms for engagement with social prescribing and demonstrates the factors either advancing or inhibiting the positive development of current/future practices in communities for marginalised women. It calls for more nuanced support for marginalised women engaging with activities that recognises the challenges in the women's lives and their resulting needs, alongside more support for the artists facilitating the groups.

• Item Type: Thesis (PhD)
• Qualification Level: Doctoral
• Additional Information: Support received from SGSAH, AHRC Training Grant AHRC DTP2 Grant Reference - AH/R012717/1.
• Subjects: H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare
• Colleges/Schools: College of Social Sciences > School of Education
• Funder's Name: Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)
• Supervisor's Name: Gormally, Professor Sinéad and Lechelt, Dr. Elysia
• Date of Award: 2026
• Depositing User: Theses Team
• Unique ID: glathesis:2026-86290
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 04 Nov 2026 16:35
• Last Modified: 04 Nov 2026 16:36
• Thesis DOI: 10.5525/gla.thesis.86290
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/86290