The Colors of Emotion: The Value and Role of Art Education in Children’s Psychological Development

Feiran Li; Bing Wu

doi:10.63313/IJSSEH.9014

Authors

Feiran Li College of Humanities, Arts and Education, Shandong Xiehe University, Shandong 250109, China Author
Bing Wu College of Humanities, Arts and Education, Shandong Xiehe University, Shandong 250109, China Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63313/IJSSEH.9014

Keywords:

art education, children’s psychological development, emotional growth, aesthetic experience, educational psychology, emotional expression

Abstract

Emotional development is a core aspect of children’s psychological growth, and art education, as an essential medium for emotional expression and aesthetic experience, holds unique value in promoting emotional regulation, empathy cultivation, and personality development. Based on the theoretical frameworks of developmental psychology and educational aesthetics, this study employs literature review and educational practice observation to explore the mechanisms and educational significance of art education in children’s emotional development. Findings indicate that art education, through the process of “perception—expression—reflection,” effectively stimulates emotional experience and self-awareness, facilitating the transition from external emotional expression to internal emotional understanding. Moreover, collaborative and open art learning environments contribute to the development of children’s social-emotional skills, enhancing emotional resonance and value recognition. This study further emphasizes that, in curriculum design and instructional practice, teachers should integrate aesthetic experience with psychological support, constructing an art education system that combines creativity with emotional education, thereby achieving coordinated development of aesthetic education and emotional nurturing.

References

[1] Zhou, K. (2022). The value of emotion in ecological art education. Art Education Research, (08), 45–48.

[2] Primary school art color teaching and emotional cultivation. (2023). Primary Education Research, 2023(09), 30–34.

[3] Fang, Z. (2018). Preliminary exploration of life-oriented early childhood art education guided by the Guidelines for Learning and Development of 3–6-Year-Old Children. Voca-tional Education, (09), 56–59.

[4] Wei, Y. (2020). Text analysis of aesthetic emotion representation in preschool children’s art works (Master’s thesis). CNKI.

[5] Chu, N. (2021). Strategies for cultivating students’ color perception in primary school art teaching. Journal of Art and Education Research, 12(4), 22–27.

[6] Zhao, L. (2023). Construction of intelligent art education evaluation platform and experi-mental classroom. Higher Education & Educational Technology Journal, 2023.

[7] Cui, Y., & colleagues. (2022). The research focus and development trend of art therapy in education: A bibliometric analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 1002504.

[8] Xing, W. (2024). Comparative analysis of art therapy in education: China vs. other coun-tries. Education & Art Therapy Reviews.

[9] Zhou, T. (2023). The impact of group art activities on children’s social-emotional devel-opment. Contemporary Education Research Journal, 2023(5), 78–85.

[10] National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE). (2019). How arts education supports social-emotional development: A theory of action.

[11] Research on creativity and emotional development of preschool children (Collection of empirical studies). Representative studies on emotional expression and psychological con-struction in early childhood art activities.

[12] Art education as a healing method helps sensitive adolescents… (2024). Journal of Educa-tion and Practice. “Art Education as a Healing Method Helps Sensitive Adolescents…” (2024). Journal of Education and Practice.