[6] Unstructured and more informal bibliotherapy fits under creative arts therapies, possibly including reading or activity recommendations by a librarian or health professional based on perceived therapeutic value.
More structured bibliotherapy can be described as supportive psychotherapy, where more consideration is placed on the therapist in the selection of reading material and in including other activities to facilitate skill acquisition and symptom reduction.
According to the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus, in his monumental work Bibliotheca historica, there was a phrase above the entrance to the royal chamber where books were stored by King Ramses II of Egypt.
[8] Galen, the extraordinary philosopher and physician to Marcus Aurelius of Rome, maintained a medical library in the first century A.D., used not only by himself but by the staff of the Sanctuary Asclepion, a Roman spa famous for its therapeutic waters and considered to be one of the first hospital centers in the world.
After the term bibliotherapy was coined by Samuel McChord Crothers in an August 1916 Atlantic Monthly article, it eventually found its way into the medical lexicon.
Elizabeth Pomeroy, director of the Veterans Administration Library Service, published the results of her research in 1937 on the efficacy of bibliotherapy at VA hospitals.
Charles Hagberg-Wright, librarian of the London Library, speaking at the 1930 British Empire Red Cross Conference, spoke about the importance of bibliotherapy as part of "curative medicine" in hospitals.
The concept of bibliotherapy has widened over time, to include self-help manuals without therapeutic intervention, or a therapist "prescribing" a movie that might provide needed catharsis to a client.
[18] The Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science (2011) defines bibliotherapy as:[19] The use of books selected on the basis of content in a planned reading program designed to facilitate the recovery of patients suffering from mental illness or emotional disturbance.
[20] Although the term "bibliotherapy" was first coined by Samuel Crothers in 1916, the use of books to change behavior and reduce distress has a long history, dating back to the Middle Ages.
By empathizing with the character the client undergoes a form of catharsis through gaining hope and releasing emotional tension, which consequently leads to insights and behavioral change.
Proponents suggest that the story form offers a healing medium that allows the listener to embark on an imaginative journey, rather than being lectured or directly addressed about the issue.
[12] Glavin et al. (2017) also conducted a review and concluded that bibliotherapy could effectively treat post-traumatic stress disorder, even though well-designed RTCs still need to ascertain this statement.
[25] The use of bibliotherapy in mental health programs, including those for substance abuse, has been shown to be beneficial to patients in the United Kingdom where it is a popular resource.
Bibliotherapy using CBT relies mainly on self-help books which work to correct negative behaviors by offering alternative, positive actions.
In her work on counseling with aggressive boys, Shechtman discusses the deficits these children exhibit and describes affect disorders with symptoms of emotional arousal, low levels of empathy, and difficulties in self-expression.
Over the last fifteen years, however, the genre has evolved and public health graphic novels and are now commonly 150 pages long and focus more on adult struggles with physical or mental illness.
Research shows graphic novels are of use to students with traditional learning disabilities, like dyslexia and also have been shown to be effective when used in a bibliotherapeutic context to assist people with mental illness in explaining their own struggles to others.
Many therapeutic stories are written for specific individual needs, but practitioners have also used them to build psychological resilience when groups and communities face challenges.
[36] Teachers as practitioners of bibliotherapy select appropriate reading materials and match them to the needs of individual students to assist them in the development of self-awareness, problem-solving skills, perspective-taking, and understanding of problems.
[36] In the article "Read two books and write me in the morning",[38] the authors highlight the fact that teachers are an integral part of a student's therapeutic team.
They also note that teachers have been referred to as carryover agents, who carry out recommendations from other professionals who have suggested accommodations necessary to ensure a particular student's well-being or success in their classroom.
Through books, "children are able to see reflections of themselves, their times, their country, their concerns... well-written realistic fiction will always help readers gain a deeper understanding of themselves and others.
[41] Bibliotherapy "does not prescribe meanings, nor is it a form of direct teaching; it is more an invitation and permission giving to children to unveil wisdom and insight that might otherwise be squelched.
Her evaluation at the end of the 12-week program described all responses as positive and participants commented that they "look forward to the group as it made them think for themselves and gave them something to think about aside from their ailments and the monotony of the day" (p. 90).
[35] There has been advocacy for reading books containing difficult themes in advance, rather than in response to a parent or teacher identifying a specific issue in a child's life.