An arts-based compassion training guided by social neuroscience and creative writing theory

Within health science education, arts and humanities interventions are used to teach compassion, yet the connection between methodologies and outcomes is often tenuous. While evidence-based methods for cultivating compassion exist, they are rarely described as guiding frameworks for arts-based or humanities interventions. Additionally, arts practitioners and humanities educators familiar with the theory, pedagogy, and practices of their disciplines are often absent from interventions that could benefit from their expertise. Educational models that are grounded in the available evidence from social neuroscience and informed by creative writing theory and pedagogy can address these gaps.

In 2024 and 2025, 2 "Dear Human" workshops were conducted for 25 health professions students, staff, and faculty associated with the Medical University of South Carolina in collaboration with the Gibbes Museum of Art. The workshop approach was informed by evidence-based frameworks for cultivating compassion, museum-based education, and creative writing. The educational session incorporated a sequence of creative writing exercises designed to promote presence, perspective-taking, and affective connection, a motivator of compassionate action.

The authors constructed themes based on analysis of 25 participants' written workshop responses and found in those responses attitudes and motivations proximal to affective connection, common humanity, and applied compassion. They also determined that revision of the educational design could ensure the model aligns with best practices in compassion training, specifically by being more directive in the call to respond to imagined suffering.

Next steps involve revising the final prompt of the "Dear Human" sequence to be more directive in its call to recognize and respond to the imagined suffering of humans depicted in visual art. After revision, the goal is to assess the new version, offer the innovation to larger groups of health science students and practitioners, and encourage mixed-methods research of the approach.