Painting therapy uses nonverbal tools to meet the psychological needs of painters, with emotional, visual, and motivational characteristics. Integrating painting therapy into the teaching of folk art creation enriches students’ emotional experience, effectively alleviates their tense psychology, increases their confidence in innovation, and promotes their healthy psychological development.

The study selected 90 patients with depression who were in the recovery stage and were treated at our psychological clinic from January 2022 to December 2022. Randomly divided into two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The control group received medication and routine care, while the experimental group received folk art creation and painting therapy on top of the control group. The treatment period for both groups is three months. After treatment, patients will be followed up to assess their depressive symptoms.

The study used the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) and Social Deficiency Screening Scale (SDSS) as evaluation criteria. Use SPSS23.0 software for data statistics. The results showed a significant score difference between the two groups after treatment (P<0.05). The experimental group continued to show a significant decrease (P<0.05) after six months and one year of follow-up, while the control group showed no significant decrease (P>0.05).

Relying solely on medication treatment and rest is difficult for patients with depression to recover, while painting therapy can effectively alleviate their depressive symptoms and improve their daily life.

The program of Sichuan Key Research Base of Social Sciences and Cultural Industry Development Research Center, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences, Education Office of Sichuan Province (No. WHCY2023B14); Program of Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences, Education Office of Sichuan Province and China Salt Culture Research Center, Sichuan Key Research Base of Philosophy and Social Sciences (No. YWHY23-07); Teaching reform of Sichuan University of Science& Engineering (No. JG-2354).