Girija Kaimal, EdD, ATR-BC, is professor and chair of the Creative Arts Therapies at Drexel University. In her Health, Arts, Learning, and Evaluation (HALE) research lab, she examines the physiological and psychological health outcomes of visual and narrative self-expression. She has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers and two books including The Expressive Instinct (Oxford University Press) and Arts-based approaches to support mental health and well-being (Routledge). Her research has been continually funded since 2008 by federal agencies like the Department of Defense, Department of Education, National Endowment for the Arts, as well as foundation and academic centers and has been featured by NPR, CNN, The New York Times as well as a range of media outlets worldwide. Her research studies examine outcomes of art therapy for post-traumatic stress among military service members, wellness interventions for peri and post-menopausal women and arts-based approaches to mitigate chronic stress among patients and caregivers in pediatric hematology/oncology settings. Additional international research projects include examining the therapeutic underpinnings of heritage artforms. Living out her research interests, she has been a lifelong visual artist, and her art explores the intersection natural media and metaphorical representation of human emotion and experiences.  Kaimal has a doctorate from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, Master of Arts from Drexel University and Bachelor's in Design from the National Institute of Design in India.

Academic Distinctions

• International Travel Award, Drexel University, 2019
• Best Paper Award, Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal, 2018
• 100 Women in Science, 2018
• Faculty Summer Research Award, Drexel University, 2017
• Assessment Fellow, Drexel University, Inaugural Cohort, 2016 – 2017
• American Art Therapy Association Research Award, 2015
• Career Development Award, Drexel University, 2014
• Alpha Eta Honors Society, Elected member, 2001
• Advanced Doctoral Grant, Harvard University Graduate School of Education, 2005
• Gender Studies Doctoral Research Award, Harvard Graduate School of Education, 2003
• Dean’s Award for Doctoral Students (2002), Harvard Graduate School of Education
• Sherry Jaspan Lyons Award for Clinical Excellence in Therapy with Children and Adolescents, Drexel University, 2001
• Distinguished Service Award, American Art Therapy Association (2024)
• Provost’s award for outstanding scholarly productivity, Drexel University (2023)
• Freddie Reisman award for faculty creative and scholarly works, Drexel University (2022)
• International travel award, Drexel University (2019)
• Most active artist award, Pennsylvania Art Therapy Association (2019)

Faculty Fellowships

Assessment Fellow (Inaugural cohort), Drexel University

Professional Society

Selected Publications

Selected Recent Publications:

Kaimal, G., Stickley, K.S., Malhotra, B., Valldejuli, K., & Herres, J. (2025). Psychosocial benefits of engaging in heritage arts practices in art therapy. The arts in psychotherapy, 93, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2025.102271

Arslanbek. A., Malhotra, B., Stickley, K.S., Herres, J., Spooner, H., Lamb, D.G., Levy, C.E., Williamson, J.B., Kaimal. G. (2024). Exploring the evocative qualities of masks’ visual imagery and their associations with adversity and trauma. Frontiers in psychology, 15: 1337927. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2024.1351757

Dieterich-Hartwell, R.M., Kaimal, G., & Sukumar, D. (2023). A Creative Arts Therapy and Nutrition Approach for Postmenopausal Women. Art Therapy, https://doi.org/10.1080/07421656.2023.2267987

Kaimal, G., Carroll-Haskins, K., Topoglu, Y., Ramakrishnan, A., Arslanbek, A., & Ayaz, H. (2021). Exploratory fNIRS assessment of differences in activation in virtual reality visual self-expression including with a fragrance stimulus. Art Therapy, 37, 1: 16-24. https://doi.org/10.1080/07421656.2019.1659662

Snyder, K., Malhotra, B., & Kaimal, G. (2021). Team value and visual voice: Healthcare providers perspectives on the contributions and impact of art therapy in pediatric hematology/ oncology clinics. The arts in psychotherapy, 75, 101808. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2021.101808

Grant participation:

• National Endowment for the Arts
• Department of Defense
• National Institutes of Health
• Johns Hopkins University

Editorial review board membership:

• Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association
• Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal
• International Journal of Art Therapy
• Urban Review
• The Arts in Psychotherapy
• Frontiers in Psychology (Clinical and health psychology)

Research Interests

• Stress and trauma
• Neuroscience of visual self-expression
• Oncology and survivorship (pediatric and adults)
• Indigenous and traditional artforms
• Virtual reality art therapy
• Qualitative and mixed methods research approaches

View Research Profile

Doctor of Education (Human Development and Psychology):
Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA

Master of Arts (Art Therapy): Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA

Bachelor of Design: National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, India.