원예치료 프로그램이 지적장애인의 사회기술과 자기표현에 미치는 영향

Effects of Horticultural Therapy on Social Skill and Self-expression of the Intellectually Challenged People

The present study aims to delve into the influence of a horticultural therapy program on intellectually challenged people’s social skills and self-expression. A step-by-step horticultural therapy program was administered to 10 intellectually challenged people resident at P Group Home in Youngcheon Gyeongsangbukdo every Friday from March to December in 2008 (38 times in total). In sum, social skills showed a significant difference after the horticultural therapy program completed (P < 0.01). Also, a significant difference was found in content, a sub-category under self-expression (P < 0.01). By contrast, another sub-category, voice led to no statistically significant difference whereas overall mean values rose. The other sub-category, gesture showed a significant difference as well (P < 0.05). These findings indicate that the horticultural therapy program was effective for social skills and self-expression of the intellectually challenged. It seems necessary to study further on how to apply persistent and subject-specific horticultural therapy programs.