Calm, presence and well-being through craftsmanship
At a time when many people are looking for meaningful and stress-relieving activities in their everyday lives, craftsmanship have gained renewed attention. In response to the increasing digitalisation of society, we are seeing a movement back towards manual, creative and meaningful activities, supported by societal tendencies such as sustainability, slow living and mental health.
Activities such as knitting, sewing, pottery, wood carving and basket weaving are now considered not only as creative expressions or occupations, but also as paths to calm, presence and well-being. However, the use of crafts and handicrafts in health-promoting treatment is not new. Throughout history, such activities have been used in psychiatry, for example, and to varying degrees in other areas of healthcare.
As early as the beginning of the 20th century, psychiatrist Adolf Meyer described how meaningful activities could promote mental health. Later, in 1962, occupational therapist Mary Reilly formulated the therapeutic potential of manual activity as follows:
‘that through the use of their hands, driven by mind and will, people can influence their own health’ (1). Creative activities have played a central role in promoting health, particularly in occupational therapy.
But what actually happens when we work with our hands?
A number of qualitative studies in particular indicate that craft and handicraft activities can have positive effects on health and well-being (2).
The research falls broadly into two categories: self-selected hobby activities and interventions with a therapeutic purpose. In review literature, these categories may be separate or mixed, which has implications for the strength of the evidence and should be considered when establishing new health services.
Research into crafts and craftsmanship as a health-promoting treatment points to positive effects for adults, particularly in relation to the alleviation of stress, anxiety and depression, as well as a reduced experience of hopelessness (3). At the same time, analyses show that the methodological quality of existing studies is generally low, partly due to inadequate effect measurements and insufficient information about how the activities are organised and implemented. The wide variety of activities – from knitting to ceramics and bookbinding – also makes it difficult to compare and collate results across studies.
Studies of a wider range of activities, from embroidery to gaming, singing and music, suggest that these can contribute to mental recovery, happiness and cohesion (4). A recent public health study from England showed that participating in crafts and handicrafts just once a year had at least as much or more positive effect on well-being – including quality of life and happiness – as key life factors such as housing, work and health (5).
But how can the health effects of these activities be documented? The health service requires evidence, and it is not enough simply to describe experiences – the effects must be measurable. This presents a key challenge: there are still no proven tools for measuring the importance of crafts and handicrafts for health and well-being.
The tools used today are primarily disease-oriented and record, for example, changes in stress, anxiety or depression via pre- and post-measurements (6).
The practical framework for the study
An ongoing research project aims to develop a tool that can illuminate and measure how craft and handicraft activities affect human health.
The project is based on both existing research and new data collected from people who have experience with these activities – either as part of treatment or in their everyday lives.
The study is being conducted using a systematic method called Group Concept Mapping (GCM) and is primarily being carried out online to ensure broad participation (7). Participants represent people with personal experience of promoting their own health through craft and handicraft activities, as well as people who either teach or offer treatment/therapy involving these types of activities as part of health promotion.
The first phase of the project consisted of a study of people’s experiences with the effects of crafts and handicrafts on health. The participants’ experiences were collected through brainstorming on the question: In your opinion, what beneficial effects can handicrafts and crafts have on health?
In this phase, 140 people participated, predominantly women (85%) in the 50-69 age group (59%), but with representation from both young people under 30 and older people over 70. The vast majority commented on the basis of their own experiences with crafts and handicrafts (81%).
After reviewing the statements collected, 147 unique responses to the question were identified. These included examples such as: “Breathing more calmly”, “It gives me self-esteem”, “Help against loneliness”, “Creates balance in my everyday life”, “Reduces pain” and “Joy of creating”.
Next phase
In the next phase, the unique responses will be sorted by representatives from the same types of participants who contributed to the brainstorming. The purpose of the sorting is to identify key themes, and the process will result in a list of topics that a future measurement tool will need to address in order to highlight the effects of craft and handicraft activities.
At the same time, participants will score each response in terms of its significance for understanding the beneficial effects that handicraft and craft activities can have on health.
Once the sorting and scoring work has been completed, workshops will be held with representatives from the same groups that participated in the GCM study. They will contribute to discussions on the design of a future tool, including response categories/scales and instructions.
Craftsmanship – a contribution to social well-being and community
The themes that have emerged and the assessment of their significance provide us with a solid basis for developing a measurement tool that can shed light on how craftsmanship and handicraft activities affect health and well-being. Such a tool will provide new knowledge about what people experience as effective, while also making it possible to document effects in a way that can be used in both research and practice.
The goal is not only to measure, but to understand – and thus strengthen the use of creative and meaningful activities as a path to better health. In this way, documenting health effects can also help to support the role of arts and crafts – not only as an aesthetic practice, but as a contribution to society’s well-being and community.
The results can thus place crafts and handicrafts in a larger context, where the creative processes themselves can provide a necessary counterbalance to the pace and pressures of everyday life.
About the project
The MAKER project aims to develop a measurement tool that can illuminate and quantify the perceived health effects of interventions based on crafts and handicrafts. The tool focuses specifically on the positive effects of the activities themselves – rather than on the absence of symptoms such as stress, anxiety and depression or general quality of life.
The first phase of the project uses the Group Concept Mapping (GCM) method, which combines qualitative and quantitative approaches. This method examines people’s experiences of how creative and craft-based activities affect health and well-being. Participants include both individuals with personal experience of promoting health through crafts and handicrafts, as well as professionals who teach or offer treatment and therapy using these types of activities.
Research profiles:
Footnotes
1 Reilly, 1962.
2 Gaspar da Silva, 2023; la Cour et al. 2007; Reynolds, 2004; Reynolds et al., 2008; von Kurthy et al., 2023.
3 Bukhave et al., 2025.
4 Ludowyke et al., 2024.
5 Keyes et al., 2024.
6 Bukhave et al., 2025.
7 Trochim, 1989; Kane & Trochim, 2007.
References
Bukhave EB, Kirketerp A, (red.). Sundhed og trivsel gennem craft-aktiviteter – en grundbog til praksis: Gads forlag; 2023.
Bukhave EB, Creek J, Kirketerp A, Frandsen TF. (2025). The effects of crafts-based interventions on mental health and well-being: A systematic review. Aust Occup Ther J. 2025;72:e70001. DOI: 10.1111/1440-1630.70001
Gaspar da Silva, M. (2023). Storytelling embroidery art therapy group with Portuguese-speaking immigrant women in Canada. Canadian Journal of Art Therapy: Research, Practice, and Issues, 36(2), 86–104.
Kane, M., & Rosas, S. (2017). Conversations about group concept mapping: Applications, examples, and enhancements. SAGE.
Kane, M., & Trochim, W. M. K. (2007). Concept mapping for planning and evaluation. SAGE.
Keyes H, Gradidge S, Forwood SE, Gibson N et al. (2024). Creative arts and crafting predicts positively predicts subjective wellbeing. Frontiers in Public Health, 12:1417997.
la Cour K, Josephsson S, Tishelman C, & Nygård L. (2007). Experiences of engagement in creative activity at a palliative care facility. Palliative and Supportive Care 5,241-250
Ludowyke L, Lentin P, & Brown T. (2024). The Meaning and Purpose of Creativity in the
Daily Life Occupations, Activities, Acts and Behaviors Amongst Adults Living with Mental
Health Conditions: A Scoping Review. OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY IN MENTAL HEALTH, VOL. 40, NO. 1, 45–85. https://doi.org/10.1080/0164212X.2023.2218121
Perruzza N, Kinsella EA. Creative arts occupations in therapeutic practice: A review of the literature British Journal of Occupational Therapy.73(6):261-8.
REILLY M. Occupational therapy can be one of the great ideas of 20th century medicine. Am J Occup Ther. 1962;16:1-9.
Reynolds F. (2004). Conversations about creativity and chronic illness II: textile artists coping with long-term health problems reflect on the creative process. Creativity Research Journal, 16(1):79–89.
Reynolds F, Vivat B, Prior S. (2008). Women’s experiences of increasing subjective well-being in CFS/ME through leisure-based arts and crafts activities: a qualitative study. Disability and Rehabilitation, 30(17):1279–88.
Trochim, W. M. K. (1989). An introduction to concept mapping for planning and evaluation. Evaluation and Program Planning, 12, 1–16.
Trochim, W. M. K., & Kane, M. (2005). Concept mapping: An introduction to structured conceptualization in health care.
International Journal for Quality in Health Care, 17, 187–191.
Von Kürthy H, Aranda K, Sadlo G, Stew G. (2023). Embroidering as a transformative occupation. Journal of Occupational Science, 30(4), 647-660.
Theme: Various bodies
Crafts and design are closely linked to materiality, sensuousness and the physical – both in the inherent qualities of the works and through the hands that shape them. As a counter-movement to digital technologies, which are developing at the same speed as a Japanese high-speed train, we are seeing a growing interest in crafts, materials and techniques.
Further reading..
Our hands can give us a break
When schools put a greater emphasis on creativity, the students’ well-being improves. The artist in-residence programme can contribute to that, says maker and psychologist Anne Kirketerp. But a structured approach is crucial.
By: Lars Hedebo, journalist.
Published: 21-02-2023
