Art Psychotherapy for Complex PTSD: A Case for Urgent Research Investment
- Aug 20
- 2 min read
Updated: Aug 21
Policy Insight / Commentary · Open Access
Kelly Jayne¹, Jane Bourne², Eleanor Keiller³, Eleanor Melvin⁴ and Simon Hackett²
¹ Independent Researcher, UK² Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust, UK; Newcastle University, Population Health Sciences Institute, UK³ Youth Resilience Unit, Centre for Psychiatry and Mental Health, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, UK⁴ Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, UK
Corresponding author: Kelly Jayne, Kellyajayne@gmail.com
Perspectives on Complex Trauma, Volume 7, Issue 1 (2026)
Published: August 2026
Abstract
Complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD), formally recognised in the ICD-11 (2019), remains underserved by existing treatment guidelines in the United Kingdom and internationally, and is largely absent from the Art Psychotherapy evidence base. Within the NHS, current NICE-recommended treatments for PTSD — trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy and eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing — were not developed for CPTSD, and no equivalent guidelines exist for this population. This commentary draws on the authors’ recently completed unpublished integrative review of Art Psychotherapy for adults with complex psychological trauma, which identified only two studies (n = 16) meeting inclusion criteria from a six-year international search, and examines three structural constraints on evidence development: the DSM-5’s exclusion of CPTSD and its effects on research infrastructure; the limitations of randomised controlled trial methodology as applied to complex, relational interventions; and the gap between the theoretical and clinical rationale for Art Psychotherapy in complex trauma and the absence of an empirical evidence base. Recommendations are directed at NHS commissioners, UK research funding bodies, the HCPC-regulated arts therapy profession, NICE, and the international research community.
Keywords: CPTSD; art psychotherapy; trauma treatment; evidence base; NHS; NICE
Cite this article
Jayne, K., Bourne, J., Keiller, E., Melvin, E., & Hackett, S. (2026). Art psychotherapy for complex PTSD: A case for urgent research investment. Perspectives on Complex Trauma, 7(1), 29–37.
Permanent article URL: https://www.complextraumainstitute.org/post/art-psychotherapy-for-complex-ptsd-a-case-for-urgent-research-investment
Copyright and licence
© 2026 The Author(s).
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial–NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
Published by the Complex Trauma Institute.
ISSN 2635-0807