Polyphony

Journal of the Irish Association of Creative Arts Therapists

Polyphony provides a space for creative arts therapists, and collaborators from connected disciplines, in Ireland and beyond to share key insights and innovations. Authors guide us through their personal and professional journeys of discovery as they learn, teach, develop and pioneer new knowledge. This platform provides a vital forum for art, dance movement, drama and music therapists to share and promote their work and to learn from each other within and across their practices. We follow the IACAT mission “for Creative Arts Therapies to be accessible, visual and valued as an integral part of health, education and social care systems”, and we believe that the creative arts therapies hold a unique capacity to support awareness, connection, and self-knowledge and effect real change at individual and social levels.

Journal Team

Dr Pamela Whitaker, Journal Co-Editor

Pamela Whitaker is an art therapist and lecturer in the MSc Art Therapy course at Ulster University, Belfast School of Art. She was editor of the Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal from 2017-2019.

Dr Maggie O’Neill, Journal Co-Editor

Maggie O’Neill is a researcher in the Irish Centre for Social Gerontology, National University of Ireland, Galway. She researches and writes widely on Irish literature, culture and society. She has been co-editor of IACAT Journal since 2013.

Editorial Board

Aisling Brennan

Tracey Costello

Claire Flahavan

Jessica Harris

Áilbhe Hines

Ed Kuczaj

Alma McQuade

Nicki Power

Marianne Rourke

International Advisory Board

Prof Jane Edwards, University of New England

Prof Sue Jennings,  University of Roehampton

Prof Phil Jones, University College London

Prof Shaun McNiff, Lesley University

Prof Helen Payne, University of Hertfordshire

We welcome contributions in the following formats

• Feature Articles on creative arts therapy programs or projects
• Reflections on art therapy theories, approaches, practice experience, therapists’ own art-making process
• Interviews
• Research articles
• Book reviews
• Artwork
• Poetry
• Observations 
• Videos
• Profiles

Submission Guidelines

For articles / reflections / interviews

Maximum 2000 words

For research articles

Maximum 2000 words

Research articles should include an abstract (maximum 200 words) and 4-6 keywords. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions.

Book reviews

Maximum 1000 words.

Book reviews should aim to provide a summary of the work's central features, including subject matter, organization, and structure of argument, and analysis of how the work contributes to the relevant field(s) of knowledge.

Artwork (and how to cite images)

Please include a statement with the artwork (maximum 500 words).

Please send images in JPEG format.

Please ensure that the files are labelled with the titles of the artwork.

If there are accompanying captions for the artwork, please clearly indicate the corresponding artwork and send the captions in Word format.

Please provide the following information for all artwork/photography, whether your own or from an exhibition: 

• Artist/Photographer
• Year (if available)
• Title of the work (in italics)
• Medium (for artwork)
• Institution or collection that houses the work, followed by the city (if available).

E.G.: Sutherland, J 1895, The mushroom gatherers, Oil on canvas, 481x993 mm, Australian Collection, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne.

If you are citing a film still or a photo of a performance, please provide the following information:

For more information on referencing artwork in the Harvard Style: http://libraryguides.vu.edu.au/harvard/image-photograph-table-artwork 

Feature Articles

Unique, Persuasive, Concise

Feature articles address new ideas, interesting findings, unique approaches and pioneering knowledge. Polyphony aims to draw attention to innovations in the creative arts therapies – whether it is research, methods of practice, opinions, or impact.

Feature articles are less than 2000 words. They are shorter than traditional articles because they do not cover the complete story. These are articles with novel approaches, essential references, and striking imagery. Full attention is placed on outcomes and discussion, and the implications of findings. The abstract is limited to 100 words.

The work reported could be evidence based, analytical, or persuasive. These articles are unique, advancing the latest themes in the therapeutic arts. Review times are reduced, to make sure that your ideas get shared as fast as possible.

These brief papers allow you to explore your own thoughts, ideas, and insights regarding a particular topic in a less formal way than a journal article or conference paper. They provide a space for you to tease out key ideas in a format that is shorter and less time-consuming than a full-fledged paper. 

Authors should consider Polyphony a destination for contemporary creative arts therapies in progress. Headline features will report new arts therapies perspectives with “breaking” importance.

Submissions are welcome to journaleditor@iacat.ie and are considered on a rolling basis. Please note that contributions to IACAT Journalare open access. Sources should be cited and referenced in the Harvard Style.

Video and Audio

Authors who have video or audio files that they wish to submit with their article are encouraged to upload these to sites such as YouTube or Vimeo in advance and include links to these within the body of the article.

For all submissions

Please send files in Word format (please do not send PDFs)

If there are accompanying images, please ensure that the images are clearly captioned, and the files labelled. These should not be embedded in the Word file, but instead sent separately in JPEG format.

Please send a photo of the author/artist(s) and a brief biography (maximum 100 words).

When using a word which is or is asserted to be a proprietary term or trade mark, please use the symbol ® or TM.

Reproduction of copyright material: As an author, you are required to secure permission to reproduce any proprietary text, illustration, table or other materials you propose to submit.

Informed consent: Manuscripts must include a statement that informed consent was obtained from human subjects. Authors should protect patient anonymity by avoiding the use of patients’ names or initials, hospital number, or other identifying information.

Code of experimental ethics and practice and confidentiality: Contributors are required to follow the procedures in force in their countries which govern the ethics of work conducted with human or animal subjects.

The journal operates an anonymous review process whereby the identity of the author and reviewer are not revealed to each other during the progression of a paper.

Authors who have video or audio files that they wish to submit with their article are encouraged to upload these to sites such as YouTube or Vimeo in advance and include links to these within the body of the article.

Authors may share their article on their personal websites or via their institutional repository as long as they provide the Polyphony: Journal of the Irish Association of Arts Therapists citation and direct readers to the final published version on the journal website.

To cite and reference an article in Polyphony

In-Text Citation: (Author Surname Year)

Reference: Author Surname, Initial(s) Year (page created or revised), Title of the article, Polyphony: Journal of the Irish Association of Creative Arts Therapists. Available at: <URL> [Accessed: Date, Month, Year].

Style Guide 

Submissions should follow the Harvard style.

Citing: referring to sources you quote within your document. This brief citation refers the reader to the exact place in your reference list where you will provide the extended details of the source.

Reference list: the detailed list of sources that have been cited within the text.

References should be cited in the text by the name and date system (Author, year, page).

Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list at the end of the paper, in alphabetical order.

Unpublished results and personal communications are not recommended in the reference list but may be mentioned in the text.

Footnotes may be used sparingly – please use the footnote function in Word.

Regarding web sources, the full URL should be given and the date when the reference was last accessed.

IACAT Journal does not require a bibliography (sources consulted but not cited / further reading).

Reference list format

References should be listed in alphabetical order by author surname. One reference list including all sources.

Journal article: Author, A. and Author, B., Year. Title of article. Title of journal, Vol (issue), page range of article.

[In the absence of volume and issue, page number(s), or ID number if e-only journal, note web address and accessed date.]

E.G.

Lynch, D., Henihan, A.M., Kwapinski, W., Zhang, L. and Leahy, J.J. (2013) ‘Ash agglomeration and deposition during combustion of poultry litter in a bubbling fluidized-bed combustor’, Energy & Fuels, 27(8), 4684-4694.

Book: Author, A., Year. Title of book. Edition (if not 1st edition). Place of Publication: Publisher.

E.G.

Wallace, J., McMahon, G., Gunnigle, P. and O’Sullivan, M. (2013) Industrial relations in Ireland, 4th ed., Dublin: Gill & Macmillan.

Book chapter: Author, A., Year. Title of chapter. In: A. Editor and B. Editor, eds. Title of book. Edition (if not 1st edition). Place of publication: Publisher, pages.

E.G.

O’Connor, Pat (2010) ‘Gender and organisational culture at senior management level: limits and possibilities for change’ in Harford, J. and Rush. C., eds., Have women made a difference? Women in Irish universities 1850-2010, Oxford: Peter Lang, 139-162.

Cite the author(s) of the chapter in the text of your paper, not the editor(s) of the book.

Online source: Author, A., Year. Title of document [online]. Source. Available at: URL [Accessed date, month, year].

Newspaper source: Author, A. (or Title of Newspaper), Year. Title of article. Title of Newspaper, day, month, page (if available).

Thesis: Author, A., 1995. Title of thesis. Type of thesis (degree). Name of University.

All submissions are received through email to journaleditor@iacat.ie.Articles are accepted for consideration on a rolling basis. Please feel free to email us your submissions at any time, or if you have an idea for contribution but have some questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Citations – E.G.

“The early 21st century has seen the development of a global epidemic of obesity, as emphasised by a growing body of articles, popular books, and most recently the movie Supersize Me (Spurlock 2004). To prevent obesity, habits need to be changed and dietary education as part of the school curriculum is key (MacDonald 1997, p.78). It is clear that to decrease obesity levels in populations, significant sociological changes will need to take place.” (Note – a broad reference to a source needs the year, a specific reference to a comment in a source needs page number/s).

Notes re. citations

• Author(s) name: Use surname only.
• Use both authors’ surnames linked by ‘and’ for 2 authors.
• Use first author’s surname and et al. for 3 or more authors.
• If citing multiple sources at same time, list in chronological order and alphabetically thereafter for sources sharing the same year.
• Pages: Abbreviate to p. for single page and pp. for page range.
• Give full numbers for page range.
• Quote from a single page: (Critser 2003, p.31) / Quote from multiple pages: (Critser 2003, pp.31–32) / Quote generally: (Critser 2003) / Or structure your sentence to include the in-text citation: Critser said in 2003 (p.31)

Please request extended style guide from the Editor or see a Harvard Style guide for additional examples/sources not covered here.