성격검사 발전
1921 ; Rorschach(Rorschach inkblot test/Rorschach technique)Rorschach 개발 1935 ; TAT(Thematic Apperception Test ; Henry Murray, Christiana Morgan) 개발 1939 ; Wechsler-Bellevue 개인지능검사 개발 1940 ; MMPI(Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory; Starke R. Hathaway, & J. C. McKinley, MD) 개발 1948 : HTP(House Tree Person ; John N. Buck) 1949 ; CAT(Children Apperception Test 개발 ; Leopold Bellak & Sonya Sorel Bellak the picture) 1968 ; Rorschach Foundation 개설 1989 ; MMPI-Ⅱ(Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory) 제작 1965 ; 한국 MMPI 정범모, 이정균, 진위교 표준화 연구 1989 ; 한국 MMPI 한국심리학회 임상심리학회
The House-Tree-Person (HTP)3 ____________________________________________________________________________________________
Direct observation tests
Although most psychological tests are "rating scale" or "free response" measures, psychological assessment may also involve the observation of people as they complete activities. This type of assessment is usually conducted with families in a laboratory, home or with children in a classroom. The purpose may be clinical, such as to establish a pre-intervention baseline of a child's hyperactive or aggressive classroom behaviors or to observe the nature of a parent-child interaction in order to understand a relational disorder. Direct observation procedures are also used in research, for example to study the relationship between intrapsychic variables and specific target behaviors, or to explore sequences of behavioral interaction.
The Parent-Child Interaction Assessment-II (PCIA)[15] is an example of a direct observation procedure that is used with school-age children and parents. The parents and children are video recorded playing at a make-believe zoo. The Parent-Child Early Relational Assessment (Clark, 1999)[16] is used to study parents and young children and involves a feeding and a puzzle task. The MacArthur Story Stem Battery (MSSB)[17] is used to elicit narratives from children. The Dyadic Parent-Child Interaction Coding System-II (Eyberg,1981) tracks the extent to which children follow the commands of parents and vice versa and is well suited to the study of children with Oppositional Defiant Disorders and their parents.
The House-Tree-Person Interrogation Form (HTP ; House Tree Person Test)was developed by John Buck was originally an outgrowth of the Good enough scale utilized to assess intellectual functioning. Buck felt artistic creativity represented a stream of personality characteristics that flowed onto graphic art. He believed that through drawings, subjects objectified unconscious difficulties by sketching the inner image of primary process. Since it was assumed that the content and quality of the House Tree Person Test was not attributable to the stimulus itself, he believed it had to be rooted in the individual's basic personality. Since the HTPT was an out cropping of an intelligence test, Buck developed a quantitative scoring system to appraise gross classification levels of intelligence along with at qualitative interpretive analysis to appraise global personality characteristics.
HTP 성격검사 개요
1948년 John N. Buck 에 의해 처음으로 HTP 개발되었다. 이어 1969년 E. E. Hammer 에 의해서 개정되어 발료되었다. HTP 검사를 개발한 프로이드 후계 정신분석자의 J Buck(1948)는 투사법 개발의 원천은 그림 지능 검사를 개발Goodenough(1926)한 연구에서 기반이 되었다. 그후 Hammer(1969)는 성격검사로 발전되었다. 예술의 창조성이 풍부한 그래픽 아트에서 성격 특성이 나타나는 그림은 인간 내면의 이미지를 자신의 문제로 나타날 수 있다. 집 나무 사람(H T P) 검사는 지능과 성격 모두 측정하는 방법은 그림에서 나타나는 성격검사 개발은 그 만한 단서를 가지고 있다. 단서에 나타나는 특성은 단순히 어떤 자극에서 나타나는 반응이 아니라, 인간의 기본적인 욕구 표현의 일부가 성격을 근거한 반응으로 나타나는 주요한 원인과 내용에서 시작했다. 따라서 HTP 검사는 어린 유아에서 아동까지 실시할 수 있는 가장 친숙한 방법이며, 특히 지적인 능력이 미숙한 아동에게 상징적인 요구를 자유롭게 반응 할 수 있다. 투사적인 성격검사는 임상에서 반응하는 특성을 진단 기준에서 질적으로 나타나는 언어성과 비언어적인 반응을 요구하여 실시하기 때문에 억압된 정서가 나타나는 내용을 여러 반응 기준에 따라 채점하여 양적인 체계를 마련한다. HTP 검사는 언어표현를 사용하지 않아도 추상적인, 모호하고 비정형 그림의 형상으로 나타나는 검사이다. 즉 집, 나무, 사람을 순서대로 그리는 지시가 단순하고 흥미 있어 아동은고 의식 및 무의식들이 유연한 시행 및 해석에 따라 개인의 특성을 찾아 낼 수 있다.
검사 특징과 목적
HTP(House -Tree-Person)는 간단한 동작으로 나이, 인종, 성별에 관계없이 거의 모든 세계 아동에게 사용할 수 있다. HTP 검사는 그림그리는 과정에서 나타나는 몇가지 정보를 수집할 수 있는 투사를 해석하는 성격검사이다. 오히려 자유화에 비해 저항이 적으며 아동이 그림을 즐겁게 그리고 흥미 있게 그리기 때문에 거부감이 적다. 그림에서 숨어 있는 추상, 모호한 표현 또는 비정형으로 나타나는 여러 형태가 단서를 주는 것이 특징이다. 검사는 피검사자의 내면의 인식 및 태도의 척도를 이용하여 숨어 있는 감정을 중요하게 찾아 낸다. 특히 HTP 검사는 일반적인 투사검사 와 마찬가지로, 주관적인 시행 및 해석에 따라 주 특징을 찾아낸다. 한국판 표준화 검사는 없다. 미국이나 일본의 기준에 준하여 해석과 분석을 한다. 그림의 내용(집 굴뚝, 창문, 현관. 자세, 표정, 복장, 액세서리, 나무의 줄기, 가지, 뿌리)등이 어떻게 그리는 지 그 특징이 개인차 심리를 설명 할 수 있다. 더 세부적으로는 그림의 크기, 선의 강약, 그림의 위치, 원근, 대칭, 음영 등에서 어떻게 표현 나타난 형상에 따라 개인의 성격의 기능에 대한 심리를 파악할 수 있다. 따라서 림과 질문에 반응이 개인의 특성을 측정한다. 또한 뇌 손상이나 전반적인 신경학적 작용의 특성을 측정할 수 있다.
시행 방법과 채점 기준
HTP 검사는 주관적인 성격 검사(Draw a house, tree, person, & opposite sex person)이다)이다. 검사자 간단한 지시에 따라 피검사자는 집, 나무, 사람을 차래로 그린다. 사람 그림에서 성별이 다른 사람, 즉 남녀를 각각 그린다. 검사 시행은 검사자는 아동이 자유스럽게 그리고 싶은대로 그리도록 지시한다.
준비 물은 그림을 그릴수 있는 16절지 힌종이 4장, HB 연필 2자루, 지우개 1개 또는 크레용, 연필심은 뽀족히 깍지 않는다. 그리고 종이 모퉁이에 그릴 순번을 1.2.3.4. 번호를 적어 둔다. 사람 남녀 어느 쪽을 먼저 그렸는지를 알기 위해서이다.
검사 시간은 대부분 모두 150 분 정도 걸린다, 그러나 신경학 장애, 정상 성인은 그 이내 마칠수 있으나 뇌 손상한 환자는 더 많은 시간이 걸릴 수 있다. 대부분 투사법 검사는 전문가의 자격과 훈련이 요구된다. 이러한 이유는 자격과 검사 채점 방법이 어려운 편이고 많은 실습과 훈련이 필요하다.
위에서 설명한 개요를 이해하고 다음 지시를 익숙하게 훈련된 기술을 자연스럽게 말하는 사람이 아동에게 이야기 식으로 부드럽게 지시한다.
첫 단계 집, 나무, 사람 검사를 시행하기 위해서 정확하게 그리게 지시한다. 아동에게 종이를 내 밀면서 다음 같이 말한다. “여기에 내가 원하는 근사한 집 하나를 그릴 수 있지? 이렇게 말하고 "자, 종이에 멋있는 나무 하나를 그릴 수 있지” 다음에 종이를 하나 더 주면서 “멋있는 사람을 그릴 수 있지?” (만약 얼굴 표정이나 머리만 그리면 잠깐 선생님이 말한 것은 사람 천체를 그려야 됩니다. 얼굴이나 머리만 그려서는 안 됩니다.
두 번째 검사 자는 연필로 그림을 그리게 지시한다. 이 단계는 일부 크레용, 연필, 또는 기타 글 쓸 수 있는 도구를 준비하여 첫 단계와 비슷하다. 사람의 각 성별 남녀를 각각 나누어 그리게 한다. 종이 한 장에 남녀를 모두 그릴 수 있다. 성이 다른 사람을 각각 그리고 또 다른 한 장에 남녀 모두 그리게 지시한다.
(Use three pieces of plain white 8.5x11 paper, give the first and say "Here I want you to draw as good a house as you can." Question, give the next sheet. "Draw as good a tree as you can", question, give the next sheet. "Draw as good a person as you can," (if a profile or head only, say, "Wait, I want you to draw a whole person, not just the head or profile").
Results
그림이 완성되면, 피험자는 그림에 대해 총 60 가지 질문을 할 수 있다. 자신의 질문을 하거나 반응에 따라 후속 질문을 추가 할 수 있다. 예를 들어, 집을 보면서 검사 자는 이렇게 말한다. "그것은 행복한 집인가?" 와 같은 질문을 한다. "무엇으로 만든 집인가?"(What is the house made of) 이 나무는 "얼마나 오래된 나무인가?(About how old is that tree)그리고 “나무는 살아 있는가? (Is the tree alive?) 사람에 관해 질문은 "그 사람이 행복한가?" (Is that person happy?)그리고 "그 사람 기분이 어떤가?"
HTP 검사는 모두 객관적으로 양적 방법과 질적인 방법 즉 주관적인 방법으로 채점된다. 정량 점수 규정은 검사 실시규정(크리에이터)에 따라 채점하여, 일반적인 평가는 그림의 세부 정보를 분석한다. 다른 연구에서는 상관관계가 성인들 지능검사(WAIS or WISC)에서 나타날 수 있다.
그림과 질문에 반응은 대부분 주관적이기 때문에, 채점 및 해석이 어렵다. 성격을 평가하는 방식으로 질문에 그림과 반응을 분석하면 질적 점수와 관련이 있다. 예를 들어, 집 그림에서 자주 가정에 거부감을 나타낼 수 있다. 나무는 가느다란 줄기를 가지고 있지만, 큰 나무 가지에 만족이나 불만을 나타낼 수 있다. 사라에서 일반 적으로 받아들이는 얼굴 그림은 세부적으로 분석하여 보면 사회적인 빛 속에서 자신을 나타낼 수 있는 얼굴의 숨은 표현은 해석을 위하여 임상 경험이 많은 지도자의 조언이 필요하다.
그림의 집, 나무, 사람의 여러 부분에서 해석이 초점으로 나타나는 다른 방법들은 무엇인가.
집 ; 아동의 가정 환경, 가족 관계, 개인의 사람 관계 연상이 잘 나타난다. 집 그림에서 지붕, 벽, 창문, 문, 굴뚝이 필수적인 특성으로 표현된다. 이러한 표현은 자아 기능, 현실검증, 환상적인 상징이다. 예컨대 환상으로 나타나는 지붕의 손상, 지붕크기, 대인관계에서 철수하는 행동으로 해석한다. 무너지는 벽은 붕괴 자아, 희미한 벽은 성격위기감, 약한 자아통제를 나타낸다. 집 그림에서, 지붕 하나에서 지적인 측면을 나타내는 것이 벽이다. 벽은 자아강도를 실시한다. 학력을 나타 낼 수 있는 문과 창문은 바깥 세상과 개인의 관계를 나타내는 경우가 있다.
나무 ; 아동의 무의식에 숨어 있는 가정, 연상이 나무 기둥, 가지, 잎새 등이 필수적으로 나타나는 구성 요소이다. 나무 그림에서 가지는 외부 세계에 검사를 즐기는 관계를 나타낼 수 있는 트렁크 내부의 강도를 나타낼 수 있다.
사람 ; 인물 그리기는 방어기제 사용을 고려하여 나중에 그리게한다. 사람 그리기는 얼굴, 눈, 코, 입, 목, 귀, 몸체, 팔, 손, 다리 부분이 중요한 구성 요소이다. 아동 개인의 자아 상이나 중요한 사람과 관계를 가장 잘 나타난다.
다른 주관적 점수를 얻는 성격검사와 마찬가지로 그 신뢰성과 타당성에 대한 약간의 지원이 있다. 그러나 HTP 검사는 뇌 손상의 특정 유형을 가진 사람을 차별 할 수 있는 몇 가지 증거가 있다. 보다 구체적으로 뇌 손상으로 정신 분열증 환자에게서 효율적으로 나타난다.
house - person - tree test - this is a projective test where a subject is usually asked to draw separate pictures of a house, a person, .a tree.
Ask questions after each picture is drawn:
Person Who is this person, how old are they, what's their favorite thing to do, what's something they do not like, has anyone tried to hurt them, who looks out for them? House Who lives here, are they happy, what goes on inside, what's it like at night, do people visit here, what else do the people in the house want to add to the drawing? Tree What kind of tree is this, how old is it, what season is it, has anyone tried to cut it down, what else grows nearby, who waters the tree, trees need sunshine to live so does it get enough sunshine?
House interpretations are loosely based on research and on the symbolic meaning of the aspects of the house. They should hopefully be nurturing places with normal levels of detail and normal size. Too little and the client may reject family life; too big and they may be overwhelmed by it.
Lines and walls represent boundaries and strengths of the ego, thus weak lines in the structure of the house are weaknesses in the ego, while strong lines are problems with anxiety and a need to reinforce boundaries.
The roof symbolizes the fantasy life, and extra attention to it can indicate extra attention to fantasy and ideation, while incomplete, tiny, or burning roofs can indicate avoidance of overpowering and frightening fantasies (think about fears of ghosts in the attic - these are based on the association for us).
Windows, doors, and sidewalks are all ways that others enter or see into the house, so they relate to openness, willingness to interact with others, and ideas about the environment. Thus, shades, shutters, bars, curtains, and long and winding sidewalks indicate some unwillingness to reveal much about yourself (think about expression like windows to the soul or the door to the mind). Cars could be signs of visitors coming or people in the home leaving. Lights could be signs to welcome visitors or reveal prowlers. Open doors or many windows could mean strong needs to engage others. Big windows, especially in the bathroom, could be exhibitionistic desires.
Psychotics tends to show groundlines (their need for grounding), clear visions of the insides of the house (they believe their thoughts and mind are open to view by others), strange angles (like their strange thought processes), or a house on the verge of a collapse (like their ego).
Tree interpretations : The trunk is seen to represent the ego. sense of self, and the intactness of the personality. Thus heavy lines or shadings to represent bark indicate anxiety about one's self, small trunks are limited ego strength, large trunks are more strength... (think about the saying that a tree that bends lasts through the wind, but one that doesn't snaps, like the ego that is flexible and healthy lasts through the world, but the inflexible and neurotic ego ends up broken). A tree split down the middle, as if hit by lightening, can indicate a fragmented personality and serious mental illness, or a sign of organicity.
Limbs are the efforts our ego makes to "reach out" to the world and support "things that feed us" what we need. Thus, limbs detached are difficulties reaching out, or efforts to reach out that we can't control. Small branches are limited skills to reach out, while big branches may be too much reaching out to meet needs. Club shaped branches or very pointy ones represent aggressiveness. Gnarled branches are "twisted" and represent being "twisted" in some efforts to reach out. Dead branches mean emptiness and hopelessness.
Leaves are signs that efforts to reach out are successful, since leaves growing mean the tree is reaching out to the sun and getting food and water. Thus, no leaves could mean feeling barren, while leaves detached from the branches mean the nurturing we get is not very predictable. Pointy leaves could be aggression, obsessive attention to detail on the leaves could be Obsessive Compulsive tendencies.
Roots are what "ground" the tree and people, and typically relate to reality testing and orientation. No roots can mean insecurity and no feeling of being grounded, overemphasized roots can be excessive concern with reality testing, while dead roots can mean feelings of disconnection from reality, emptiness, and despair.
Other details: Christmas trees after the season is over can mean regressive fantasies (thinking about holidays and family and good times to make yourself feel better). Knots or twists in the wood, like gnarled limbs, indicate some part of the ego is twisted around some issue. Knotholes are an absence of trunk, and thus an absence of ego control. Sometimes they are seen as indicating a trauma, and the height up the tree represents the age of the trauma (so, halfway up for a 10 year old is at age 5). Squirrels and small animals are an Id intrusion into an area free from ego control. Research does show that weeping willow trees are more common in depressed people. People with high needs for nurturance draw apples.
Person intrepretations : Here, the idea is that the person of the same sex is like you, and the person of the opposite sex is what you may not admit is like you. Very Jungian when you think of it, in that the opposite sex is the anima or animus.
Typically, the person is centered or just below vertical center on the page, is symmetrical, pleasing to look at, and sufficiently detailed. They tend to be clothed, although pregnant women or women who have recently given birth may draw naked women, and women having recently seen the gynecologist may draw naked women. Erasures led to improvements, and the person seems contented with the drawing, perhaps laughing at it a bit. Usually the same-sex person is drawn first, and the opposite-sexed person second. Some interpret drawing the opposite-sex first as a sign of gender confusion, which has not been well-supported.
Arms are the way we reach out to the environment, and hands the way we effect it. Open arms indicate willingness to engage, closed arms are defensiveness, disconnected arms are powerlessness... pointed fingers or balled fists can be aggression, hidden or gloved hands can be anxiety or antisocial tendencies... It could also be difficulty drawing good hands.
Legs and feet are also like the roots of trees, and represent grounding and power too. If cut off at the bottom of the paper (think of cutting someone off at the knees) it can mean loss of autonomy, small feet (inadequate base) can indicate a need for security, while big feet can indicate the same.
The neck separates the head (cognition) from the body (drives and needs), so no neck is no separation, long neck is desire for more separation of the two, etc...
Mouth is how we get needs met (think Freud and oral stuff), so big or open mouth is neediness, cupid bow or luscious lips is sexualized needs, closed tight mouth is denial of needs or some passive-aggression, and frowns, sneers, and smiles mean with they do in real life. There is limited support for oral-dependency themes, and more for slash mouths and teeth to be consistent with verbal aggression.
Genitalia, breasts, etc... are seldom drawn, and indicate sexual concerns and discomfort. Emphasis on breasts though are not uncommon in prepubescent girls, and both disturbed and non-disturbed boys emphasize pectorals.
Drawing clowns (hiding face and person), robots (loss of emotions in a psychotic way), cowboys (masculinized needs), snowmen (rounded bodies, regressive themes), stick man (childish or regressive themes) etc... can mean what is noted in parenthesis above. Excessive details are consistent with some obsessiveness when dealing with anxiety, while a marked lack of detail can indicate withdrawal, low energy, or boredom.
References
Richard Niolon, Ph.D., Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Spring 2003
Read more: House-tree-person test - children, functioning, adults, people, used, brain, personality, http://www.minddisorders.com/Flu-Inv/House-tree-person-test.html#ixzz1OjCcXNZF Groth-Marnat, Gary. Handbook of Psychological Assessment. 3rd edition. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1997. Kline, Paul. The Handbook of Psychological Testing. New York: Routledge, 1999. Reynolds, Cecil R. Comprehensive Clinical Psychology Volume 4: Assessment. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1998.
사진설명
The House-Tree-Person (HTP) test, created by Buck in 1948, provides a measure of a self-perception and attitudes by requiring the test taker to draw a house, a tree, and a person. The picture of the house is supposed to conjure the child's feelings toward his or her family. The picture of the tree is supposed to elicit feelings of strength or weakness. The picture of the person, as with other figure drawing tests, elicits information regarding the child's self-concept. The HTP, though mostly given to children and adolescents, is appropriate for anyone over the age of three
사진설명 house - person - tree test - this is a projective test where a subject is usually asked to draw separate pictures of a house, a person, .a tree. The House-Tree-Person (HTP) test, created by Buck in 1948, provides a measure of a self-perception and attitudes by requiring the test taker to draw a house, a tree, and a person. The picture of the house is supposed to conjure the child's feelings toward his or her family. The picture of the tree is supposed to elicit feelings of strength or weakness. The picture of the person, as with other figure drawing tests, elicits information regarding the child's self-concept. The HTP, though mostly given to children and adolescents, is appropriate for anyone over the age of three
참고문헌
Read more: House-tree-person test - children, functioning, adults, people, used, brain, personality, http://www.minddisorders.com/Flu-Inv/House-tree-person-test.html#ixzz1OjCcXNZF Groth-Marnat, Gary. Handbook of Psychological Assessment. 3rd edition. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1997. Kline, Paul. The Handbook of Psychological Testing. New York: Routledge, 1999. Reynolds, Cecil R. Comprehensive Clinical Psychology Volume 4: Assessment. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1998.
Ask questions after each picture is drawn:
Person Who is this person, how old are they, what's their favorite thing to do, what's something they do not like, has anyone tried to hurt them, who looks out for them? House Who lives here, are they happy, what goes on inside, what's it like at night, do people visit here, what else do the people in the house want to add to the drawing? Tree What kind of tree is this, how old is it, what season is it, has anyone tried to cut it down, what else grows nearby, who waters the tree, trees need sunshine to live so does it get enough sunshine?
House interpretations are loosely based on research and on the symbolic meaning of the aspects of the house. They should hopefully be nurturing places with normal levels of detail and normal size. Too little and the client may reject family life; too big and they may be overwhelmed by it.
Lines and walls represent boundaries and strengths of the ego, thus weak lines in the structure of the house are weaknesses in the ego, while strong lines are problems with anxiety and a need to reinforce boundaries.
The roof symbolizes the fantasy life, and extra attention to it can indicate extra attention to fantasy and ideation, while incomplete, tiny, or burning roofs can indicate avoidance of overpowering and frightening fantasies (think about fears of ghosts in the attic - these are based on the association for us).
Windows, doors, and sidewalks are all ways that others enter or see into the house, so they relate to openness, willingness to interact with others, and ideas about the environment. Thus, shades, shutters, bars, curtains, and long and winding sidewalks indicate some unwillingness to reveal much about yourself (think about expression like windows to the soul or the door to the mind). Cars could be signs of visitors coming or people in the home leaving. Lights could be signs to welcome visitors or reveal prowlers. Open doors or many windows could mean strong needs to engage others. Big windows, especially in the bathroom, could be exhibitionistic desires.
Psychotics tends to show groundlines (their need for grounding), clear visions of the insides of the house (they believe their thoughts and mind are open to view by others), strange angles (like their strange thought processes), or a house on the verge of a collapse (like their ego).
Tree interpretations : The trunk is seen to represent the ego. sense of self, and the intactness of the personality. Thus heavy lines or shadings to represent bark indicate anxiety about one's self, small trunks are limited ego strength, large trunks are more strength... (think about the saying that a tree that bends lasts through the wind, but one that doesn't snaps, like the ego that is flexible and healthy lasts through the world, but the inflexible and neurotic ego ends up broken). A tree split down the middle, as if hit by lightening, can indicate a fragmented personality and serious mental illness, or a sign of organicity.
Limbs are the efforts our ego makes to "reach out" to the world and support "things that feed us" what we need. Thus, limbs detached are difficulties reaching out, or efforts to reach out that we can't control. Small branches are limited skills to reach out, while big branches may be too much reaching out to meet needs. Club shaped branches or very pointy ones represent aggressiveness. Gnarled branches are "twisted" and represent being "twisted" in some efforts to reach out. Dead branches mean emptiness and hopelessness.
Leaves are signs that efforts to reach out are successful, since leaves growing mean the tree is reaching out to the sun and getting food and water. Thus, no leaves could mean feeling barren, while leaves detached from the branches mean the nurturing we get is not very predictable. Pointy leaves could be aggression, obsessive attention to detail on the leaves could be Obsessive Compulsive tendencies.
Roots are what "ground" the tree and people, and typically relate to reality testing and orientation. No roots can mean insecurity and no feeling of being grounded, overemphasized roots can be excessive concern with reality testing, while dead roots can mean feelings of disconnection from reality, emptiness, and despair.
Other details: Christmas trees after the season is over can mean regressive fantasies (thinking about holidays and family and good times to make yourself feel better). Knots or twists in the wood, like gnarled limbs, indicate some part of the ego is twisted around some issue. Knotholes are an absence of trunk, and thus an absence of ego control. Sometimes they are seen as indicating a trauma, and the height up the tree represents the age of the trauma (so, halfway up for a 10 year old is at age 5). Squirrels and small animals are an Id intrusion into an area free from ego control. Research does show that weeping willow trees are more common in depressed people. People with high needs for nurturance draw apples.
Person intrepretations : Here, the idea is that the person of the same sex is like you, and the person of the opposite sex is what you may not admit is like you. Very Jungian when you think of it, in that the opposite sex is the anima or animus.
Typically, the person is centered or just below vertical center on the page, is symmetrical, pleasing to look at, and sufficiently detailed. They tend to be clothed, although pregnant women or women who have recently given birth may draw naked women, and women having recently seen the gynecologist may draw naked women. Erasures led to improvements, and the person seems contented with the drawing, perhaps laughing at it a bit. Usually the same-sex person is drawn first, and the opposite-sexed person second. Some interpret drawing the opposite-sex first as a sign of gender confusion, which has not been well-supported.
Arms are the way we reach out to the environment, and hands the way we effect it. Open arms indicate willingness to engage, closed arms are defensiveness, disconnected arms are powerlessness... pointed fingers or balled fists can be aggression, hidden or gloved hands can be anxiety or antisocial tendencies... It could also be difficulty drawing good hands.
Legs and feet are also like the roots of trees, and represent grounding and power too. If cut off at the bottom of the paper (think of cutting someone off at the knees) it can mean loss of autonomy, small feet (inadequate base) can indicate a need for security, while big feet can indicate the same.
The neck separates the head (cognition) from the body (drives and needs), so no neck is no separation, long neck is desire for more separation of the two, etc...
Mouth is how we get needs met (think Freud and oral stuff), so big or open mouth is neediness, cupid bow or luscious lips is sexualized needs, closed tight mouth is denial of needs or some passive-aggression, and frowns, sneers, and smiles mean with they do in real life. There is limited support for oral-dependency themes, and more for slash mouths and teeth to be consistent with verbal aggression.
Genitalia, breasts, etc... are seldom drawn, and indicate sexual concerns and discomfort. Emphasis on breasts though are not uncommon in prepubescent girls, and both disturbed and non-disturbed boys emphasize pectorals.
Drawing clowns (hiding face and person), robots (loss of emotions in a psychotic way), cowboys (masculinized needs), snowmen (rounded bodies, regressive themes), stick man (childish or regressive themes) etc... can mean what is noted in parenthesis above. Excessive details are consistent with some obsessiveness when dealing with anxiety, while a marked lack of detail can indicate withdrawal, low energy, or boredom.
References
Richard Niolon, Ph.D., Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Spring 2003
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