Bibliotherapy in Social Work

Summary Bibliotherapy literally means the therapeutic use of literature.Many people will have experienced the power of literature orother art forms to offer new insight, to provide sources ofidentification, to stir the emotions, and to release feelings.In line with its current usage bibliotherapy can be broadlydefined as a technique whereby the worker seeks to utilise theseinteractive processes therapeutically so that those experiencingthe literature or other form of media can be helped towardspreventative, remedial and/or developmental goals. The literaturecan be either imaginative or didactic. It is the contentionof this article that Bibliotherapy is a useful additional toolfor social workers that can be used at the individual and grouplevel with both children and adults. Illustrations are takenfrom the ‘Wednesday Group’ which was set up by theauthor for elderly depressed patients using a bibliotherapeuticapproach, as well as from the wider literature on Bibliotherapy.