Interview | Digital art factory & mental health

In her thesis, Emma Schönborn studied how the youth creativity program ‘Digital Art Factory’ (DAF), uses creativity to support the wellbeing of teenagers at three locations in Assen, Gieten, and Appingedam. Launched in 2016, today DAF is a successful and highly valued program in its communities. 

Modeling the program

DAF’s early success was due to inspiration, intense creativity, and the hard work of its staff. It was not, however, guided by a clearly defined program model. “The program had always operated intuitively, but without a clear structure,” Schönborn explains. “So it was difficult for them to evaluate or replicate the program,” she explains. In 2024, DAF’s directors wanted to prepare a strategy for the organisation’s future, and they turned to Schönborn to investigate the program’s workings. 

Schönborn used methods from the ‘research-based program evaluation’ field to interview staff, review program documents, and observe the instructors (called “coaches”) at work. In her fieldwork she found that inspiration, creativity, and collaboration were at the heart of the program: “The instructors prioritise collaboration between the participants, and autonomy, over traditional instruction,” she explains, adding that participants “can engage with others and explore their mutual interests without fear of judgment”. Each participant sets their own learning goals and works at their own pace, pushing their imagination as far as they can. 

Using the data, Schönborn developed a detailed ‘logic model’ of the program that articulated how DAF’s inputs —skilled coaches, creative equipment, and partnerships— and its creative process, lead to enhanced social skills and emotional well-being for young people. She existing social scientific literature on mental health and creativity to inform the study. “The DAF program model is particularly effective at fostering creativity, and it also provides a foundation for social and emotional development in its participants,” she asserts. 

A case study for organisations

The study, titled, Modeling a Youth Creativity and Engagement Program for Mental Health: A Case Study of the Digital Art Factory was part of Schönborn’s 2024 thesis for University College Groningen. She hopes that the research and the program modeling method will not only help DAF, but also other small arts-based community organisations that need to develop an evaluation strategy, or make plans for extending or expanding a program. 

“With a program like this, it’s all about the creative process,” she says, concluding, “That encourages young people to find a sense of control, feel less isolation, and make social connections.”