Assessments (bridge drawing & favorite time of day)

These assessments (bridge drawing and FTD) were discussed and processed in groups during class.

The following questions will be answered pertaining to each assessment.

1) Was it useful or not useful?

The Bridge Drawing was useful to me. I thought it was not going to express anything, but it ended up expressing a lot. The bridge was rickety and the water took up most of the page.

The FTD was useful as it brought me to a place of serenity and a calmness. I was able to "go" there and was reminded of some of my favorite memories.

2) Will you apply these assessments?

Yes!

3) What information was gained?

My bridge is not sturdy indicating an I feel an unstable foundation in my life. The water represents the peace I wish to feel in my life, as it takes up most of the space.

I learned that simply drawing my favorite time of day, revealed where I would like to be right now at the very moment and those that would be with me.

4) Will you use it with your clients or forget about it when you go home?

I will continue to use this assessment with my clients, as it has proven to be helpful both for the client and me to recognize where the client sees themselves in life between two places and to note progress throughout treatment (using the assessment during a beginning session and then again during a later session).

I am looking forward to using this assessment with my clients as I have yet to try it!

Bird's Nest Drawing (BND)

The BND is a projective assessment created to evaluate the attachment security of the participant.

In children, attachment is evaluated in terms of classifications (secure, insecure avoidant, insecure ambivalent, and insecure disorganized)

In adults, attachment is evaluated in terms of relationship styles (secure, dismissing-avoidant, preoccupied, and fearful-avoidant).

MATERIALS:

- 8 1/2 x 11 white paper

-10 standard color markers

The administrator instructs the participant to:

1) "Draw a bird's nest."

2) "Write a story about the drawing that includes a beginning, middle, and end."

There is no time limit or specific age range.

Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale (FEATS)

The Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale (FEATS) utilizes scales that measure the particular variable. The drawing is to be viewed as if the rater does not know what it was supposed to be.

The variables contained in the FEATS that are used in this project are the following:

prominence of color, color fit, implied energy, space, integration, logic, realism, developmental level, details of objects and environment, line quality, and perseveration.

Each variable is rated on a scale of 0 – 5.

The FEATS focuses on the process of drawing rather than the product of the artwork.

Levick Emotional and Cognitive Art Therapy Assessment (LECATA)

The LECATA was created by Myra F. Levick (one of original founders and 1st president of AATA). It can be used with preschoolers, adolescents, or adults. Children the ages of 3-11 are most commonly included with the LECATA.

Materials: 16 cray pas

12x8 white paper

pencil/eraser upon request

The Drawing Tasks:

1. Free art task and story of completed artwork

2. Draw yourself

3. Scribble with one color and make a picture from the scribble.

4. Place what you would like to be (ages 3-5); place important to you (ages 6-11).

5. Draw a family.

Through the projective drawing tasks, this assessment measures the the normal cognitive and emotional development of children. The rating manual is used to determine the level of development and includes emotional indicators of defense mechanisms.

Click here to check out Myra F. Levick's website!

(DDS) using the (DAF)

In class tonight, the assignment was to bring in the DDS Assessments administered to an acquaintance or client.

Our instructor told us to blog our experience using the Drawing Analysis Form (DAF) to analyze the DDS.

The Drawing Analysis Form is a rater for the Diagnostic Drawing Series. The categories; color type, blending, idiosyncratic color, line/shape, integration, abstraction or representation, ground-line, people, animals, inanimate objects, abstract symbols, word inclusion, landscape, line quality/pressure, line length, movement, space usage, tree, tilt, and unusual placement, are incorporated. All three DDS drawings are rated in all listed categories. Specific guidelines for each category are to be followed when rating.

Using the DAF to analyze the DDS was a tedious process, but helped me gain a more in depth perspective on the artwork analyzed as well as a deeper understanding of the DAF. Overall, I enjoyed implementing the DAF to analyze the DDS.

Lowenfeld

-Thanks for this, Jac!

Discuss developmental creative markers & Lowenfeld’s developmental levels.

“Many art therapy practitioners believe that assessments provide increased understanding of a client’s developmental level, emotional status, and psychological framework.” (Betts)

1. The Scribbling Stage: Beginning of Self-Expression (2-4 years)

2. The Preschematic Stage: First Representational Attempts (4-7 years)

3. The Schematic Stage: The Achievement of a Form Concept (7-9 years)

4. The Gang Age: The Dawning Realism (9-12 years)

5. The Pseudo-Naturalistic Stage: The Age of Reasoning (12-14 years)

6. Adolescent Art: The Period of Decision (14-17 years)

(Taken from Creative and Mental Growth 8^th ed, by Viktor Lowenfeld and W. Lambert Brittain)

bEnDeR-gEsTaLt

The Bender-Gestalt is a developmental assessment test for children and is used in screening for psychopathology in adults. This test is individually administered. It can assess achievement, I.Q., as well as brain damage. In addition, the Bender-Gestalt screens for visual disorders. The Visual Gestalt function is a fundamental function associated with language ability and is closely associated with various functions of intelligence such as visual perception, manual motor ability, memory, temporal and spatial concepts and organization. Some visual disorders this test can reveal are the following:

Agnosia – inability to visually identify

Hemianopia – half loss of visual field

Scotoma – small lesions, spots in visual field

Optic Ataxia – deficit in visually guided hand movements

Prosopagnosia – facial agnosia Alexia – inability to read

Neglect

The readings for class discussed the six designs (A, 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8) of the test. Then the six-point scoring system was explained as being devised for greater differentiation in scoring each design. Scoring ranged from 0 (random drawing, scribbling, having no concept of the design) to 3 (all major elements present and recognizable with only minor distortions) to 5 (accurate representation). The article does not capture the entire design.

See article below:

Bender Gestalt.pdf