DRAW-A-PERSON

WILLIAM H. URBAN,M.A.
WHAT IS DAP?
● DAP is a projective test that allows an
examinee to respond to questions
through drawings
● It is a human figure drawing tests
which is meant to be administered to
children and adolescents (at some
point it is also administered to adults)
● A test used to measure non verbal
intelligence or to screen emotional or
behavioral disorders
HISTORY
● 1885, Ebenezer Cooke noted that the drawings of young children reveal
personality characteristics
● 1900-1915, two international research projects were initiated to investigate
children’s drawings, however, it was never completed
● 1926, the first draw-a-person test, it was first known as the Goodenough draw-
a- man test developed by Florence Goodenough
○ First became interested in figure drawing when she wanted to find a way to supplement the
stanford-binet intelligence test with a non-verbal measure.
○ This test was developed to assess maturity in young people; the amount of detail involved in a
child’s drawing could be used as an effective tool.
HISTORY
● Harris later revised the test including drawings of a woman, and of themselves.
Now considered as the Goodenough-Harris Test.
● 1949, Karen Machover developed the first measure of figure drawing as a
personality assessment with the Draw-A-Person Test;
○ She measure expressing that the features of the figures draw, reflect underlying attitudes,
concerns, and personality traits
● Soon after the development of the test, psychologists started considering the
test for measures of differences in personality as well as intelligence.
● The most famous quantitative approach was developed by Elizabeth Koppitz.
○ She developed a measure of assessment that has a list of emotional indicators including size of
figures, omission of body parts, and some additional “special features.”
○ The total number of the indicators are simply added up to provide a number that represents the
likeness of disturbance.
USES
● The main purpose of this test was to assist professionals in inferring;
children's cognitive developmental levels with little or no influence of
other factors such as language barriers or special needs. Any other
uses of the test are merely projective and are not endorsed by the first
creator.
PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
● Williams et al. (2006 ) reported alpha coefficient of .82 for a sample of 110
college students from the USA.
● Honores and Merino (2011) reported a mean alpha coefficient of .68 for a
sample of 155 children ranging in age from six to 11 years from Peru using a
Spanish translation of instructions.
● The reliability of DAP Test is high (Kagitcibasi & Biricik, 2011). Findings about
the validity of the test vary. Goodenough (1926) found that DAP Test
correlated with Stanford - Binet Intelligence Test (r = .74). Harris (1963)
showed that it correlated with Stanford - Binet between .26 and .92 and with
WISC between .77 and .38 in various applications.
● Little to no empirical evidence exists to validate this measure
ADMINISTRATION
ADMINISTRATION
● MATERIALS NEEDED
○ 8.5” x 11” white paper
○ a well- sharpened No. 2 black lead pencil.
● “Please draw a picture of a person” - No further instructions
need to be given, as the purpose is to provide the subject with
as nearly an unstructured situation as possible
● When questions are raised say: “That is up to you. You may do
as you like.”
ADMINISTRATION
● DAP is based on the assumption that an individual
will be forced to structure this relatively
unstructured situation in accordance with his basic,
typical, and unique personality dynamics.
● The drawing presented, to some degree, will show
both an individual’s self-image and ideal self-image.
● In some instances, an individual may present a
person of significance (parent, sibling, spouse,
teacher, etc.)
ADMINISTRATION
● The examiner closely observes the behavior of the
subject, recording spontaneous verbalizations.
● After the first figure is drawn, the examiner asks the
subject to draw a figure of the opposite sex.
○ Avoid using male or female so that one can
allow the individual to define his/her first figure
○ If the subject’s drawings are stereotyped figures
(stick figures, cartoons, etc.), it would be fruitful
to repeat the test until a complete figure is
drawn.
INTERPRETATION
INTERPRETATION
● Initial step is to describe the figures drawn (Young or old? Active or
inactive? Flexible or rigid? Handsome or ugly? Massive or diminutive?
Happy or sad? Formal or casual? Muscular or weak and atrophied?
Aggressive and dominant or passive?)
● Some examiners ask:
○ Could you tell me what sort of person this drawing reminds you of?
○ What sort of a person is he or she?
○ Make up a little story about this person
● The more naïve subject often will reveal important data concerning himself
during such a procedure
INTERPRETATION
● Examiner considers the subject’s background, family structure, chief
complaint, descriptions of drawings, and spontaneous comments
○ It is helpful to contrast the subject’s typical reactions to his
problems and frustrations with the hypotheses gleaned from the
figures he has drawn
Four Major Areas of DAP
1. Head
2. Hands, arms, shoulders, and chest
3. Torso
4. Legs and feet

● Goal of the DAP is to identify areas of conflict, exaggeration, omission, and distortion.
● The interaction of the four major body areas is vital.
● Discrepancies in interpretation between different body parts must be resolved. Examiner
should consider the subject’s background, family structure, chief complaint, description
of drawings, and spontaneous comments.
● Careful integration of hypothesis into a total personality picture is a sine qua non.
Head
● Locus of the sense of self or the ego.
● It deals perceptively with the outer world.
● The head can provide the examiner with the most valid insight
into his subject’s interaction with others as well as his self-
concept.
○ Examples:
■ Eyes and ears receive stimuli or extrapersonal data
■ Contempt, hatred, and deep aggression may be seen in
dark, piercing eyes
■ Oversensitivity and even suspiciousness may be seen
in unusual ear detailing
■ The mouth serves as an inlet for taking things into the
body and an outlet for aggression, friendliness, and
other feelings
Hands, arms, shoulders and
chest
● They combine to form a functional unit to execute the
commands of the brain or the impulse of the body.
● One can note size, shape, strength, degree of reaching
out, degree of aggression, and conflictual signs within this
functional
Torso
● Strength features similar to the hands arms shoulders and
chest. Clothing covers the body and is important symbolically
as the façade or front which subjects preset the world
● “midline emphasis” of dependent persons, of those concerned
with somatic difficulties
● Physical impulses of the body may be open and emphasized
● Indicators of control or restraint are ties, belts, jewelry which
tend to cut off impulses symbolically associated with the torso
Legs and feet
● Autonomy, self-movement, self-direction, and balance are
indicated.
○ Long legs- show strivings for autonomy
○ Balanced figure- shows emotional stability or instability
respectively
○ Stability or instability may be revealed by symmetry or
asymmetry
○ In male figures, feet are indicative of masculinity or doubts
of masculinity
○ In female figures, legs indicate sexual concerns
DAP Final Report Outline
1. Description of Testing Situation and Reaction of Subject to Testing
2. Brief Description of Subject’s Attitude to DAP
a. Reluctant, eager, talkative, self-revealing?
b. Quiet, methodical, impulsive?
c. Did s/he seek reassurance and ask further questions?
3. General Impressions Conveyed by Figures Drawn
a. Pressure factors, stroke line characteristics, size of drawing, placement of drawings, action or
movement
4. Differential Treatment of Male and Female Figures - Sex drawn first? More
attractive sex?
a. Sex closer to subject’s age? Sex subject spends most time with details more?
5. Discussion of Interpretative Hypotheses Elicited from Catalogue
6. Summary
a. Discrepancies between interpretative hypotheses, clinical judgments, past history, present
behaviors of the subject are resolved into the final integrated personality picture developed.
Example Interpretation
(Nava, 2018):
● The figure was drawn by a "healthy" female. She
emphasized that she was not a good artist, that she
could not draw, and that she was doing a terrible
job.
● She drew the female as her first drawing. She had a
total of 3 attempts to accomplish her drawing
(threatened by the content and needing to draw a
safer image). Her first drawing was named Jen.
● The person fills the entire page, is centered (self-
directed) and is outlined in orange. The artist used
long strokes (controlled behavior & inhibition) to
draw the outline and short bursts of tensional
intensity shading (anxiety) to fill in the figure
detailing. The total number of colors used was seven
(excessive).
Example Interpretation
(continuation):
● For the male, named Mat, she did not start over (not
threatened by the content of the projection).
● He too is in the center of the page and is the same
size as Jen, yet he does not appear as large (less
intimidating).
● His body is drawn with short, sketchy strokes,
especially in the arm region.
● She spontaneously commented, "I'm doing much
better with my male. He's much more proportionate."
● The total number of colors used was three (well within
average use). As the drawing progressed, she had far
fewer verbal complaints about her ability.
Example Interpretation
(continuation):
● Increased apprehension with the female drawing
● Female figure:
○ excessive color and shading - made the figure
larger and more imposing
○ long strokes - apprehension
● Male figure:
○ The same size yet appears less intense and
intimidating
○ She did not try to draw over again
○ Number of colors is within normal range
○ The shading and use of short strokes appears
anxious, yet this figure appears more confident
over the female figure
Example Interpretation
(continuation):
Jen's hair is multicolored and flows down the front of her body
(anxiety, overthinking). The mouth is reinforced (conflict relative
to that part) on the upper lip and has a dimple mark on the left
side. Her arms are thick, dangling at her sides (views self as
dependent and helpless) and overly long (overambitious
striving, desirous of isolation and withdrawal, rejection of
others). They extend toward her feet and are fat and bulky in
shape. Her shirt is well decorated and you can see trunk lines
through the shirt (thought pattern disturbances). Her pants and
shirt are colored in anxious strokes, with her legs being
significantly out of proportion to the rest of her body (emotional
immobility). Her shoes are resting on the bottom of the page
and colored in with black.
Example Interpretation
(continuation):
Mat's head is rounded, with no pupils in his eyes (immaturity,
egocentrism). The schema is the same for the mouth in both
drawings, but there is no reinforcement on Mat. He exudes a
confident look toward the viewer. His neck is proportionate to
the rest of his body. He wears a tight-fitting T-shirt and stands
with his hands behind his back (interpersonal reluctance,
evasive). The transparency we see in the trunk lines visible
through the shirt on the female is not present in this drawing.
His legs are colored in with brown pants, and his feet appear
clubbed.
Example Interpretation
(continuation):
● The symbolic abundance of ideas points toward
feelings of helplessness and emotional immobility.
● The reinforced area, or conflict, surrounds the mouth.
● The male figure shows little to no conflict, with the
only details of concern being the lack of pupils and
placement of the hands behind his back.
● Once again, interpretive focus is placed upon the
female.
Example Interpretation
(continuation):
● When she was asked to tell something about the two figures,
she started with Jen. "I patterned her after me. She's smiling
and has curly hair; she doesn't dress like me, though... She
has funky arms. What does that say about me?" In response to
the examiner’s silence she stated, "I feel big and gangly and
wear loose clothes." When she was asked to try to say more
about Jen, she said, "She's a nice person, I should have drawn
her embarrassed because I get embarrassed easy. I would
have added red cheeks".
● When asked about Mat she said, "He's athletic, built, good
upper body. He's the outdoorsy type. He's wearing a muscle
shirt." When she was asked why Mat's arms are behind his
body, she stated, "I learned from Jen and put the arms behind.
I can't draw arms."
Example Interpretation (continuation):
● She feels highly threatened by her feelings of
inadequacy and embarrassment at feeling "big and
gangly."
● However, her weight is appropriate and balanced.
This exaggeration of physical features was a clear
projection of internal issues.
● Her preoccupation with her imagined defects in
appearance and her embarrassment were
symbolized by the inability to begin and her need to
start twice to draw the female figure.
● Her use of excessive color, as compared to an
average use in Mat, is also a symbolic repetition of
her need to hide behind an camouflage. However, it
has made her appear imposing and large.
Example Interpretation (continuation):

● The symbolic abundance of feelings of

hopelessness, isolation, and immobility is apparent
in her body image feelings.
● It also becomes clear why the mouth was
emphasized on the female and not on the male
figure, as the mouth is the means by which food is
brought in.
● In addition, the transparency that was noted in the
female's trunk is not a thought disorder as in
schizophrenia but certainly a thought disorder in her
own body image and dysmorphic thinking.
Advantages: Disadvantages:
● Easy to administer ● Restricted amount of hypothesis can be
● No strict formats developed
● Relatively culture free ● It is a nonverbal test but problems might
● Avoids biases associated with speech, occur during inquiry
hearing, or language difficulties.
● Helps the examinees feel at ease before
starting another, more formal test
Important Considerations
● No interpretation concerning human behavior should be made without full
appreciation and use of the biosocial environment of the subject
● Although DAP provides considerable insight into personality structure and area
of physical concern, it cannot predict accurately the future since all
circumstances which involve the subject cannot be predicted or controlled.
● It is not advisable to use the DAP to categorize individuals or predict future
difficulties unless the clinical and historical data strongly substantiate the DAP
findings
● Forcing unacceptable insights or information on patients who are striving to
keep these hidden could be disastrous to both patient and clinician
● It is important to consider strengths and modes of coping with weaknesses
which maintain functional autonomy of the patient
Issues and Challenges in Use of the Test
● The DAP has been used by some practitioners even though they have little
familiarity and training in the use of the tool.
● DAP fails the test of diagnostic validity which identifies matched groups of
schizophrenics, neurotics, and normals on the basis of human figure drawings
Wanderer (1969).
● Hammer (1969) challenged Wanderer's study primarily by pointing out that
Machover never intended the DAP to be used as a "primary tool" in the
diagnostic situation, but only as a ''supplement, a graphic adjunct to the verbal
techniques.
Issues and Challenges in Use of the Test
● Not intended to estimate mental age in older candidates for several reasons:
○ Correlation starts to become weaker after age ten, especially in teens without intellectual
disability. (National Center for Health Statistics, 1974)
○ Scores hit a noticeable ceiling after age 12. (National Center for Health Statistics, 1974)
○ Older candidates are likely to have taken drawing lessons
● DAP misses the intelligence of a candidate knowing his own limits.
○ A hand in a pocket, for instance, is often graded as failure to draw a hand.
○ Fails to consider that fact that candidates could be clever enough to hide their inability in a
clever manner
RELATED STUDIES #1
● According to Ludwig (1969), there is significant positive correlation between a
measure of physical self-esteem and the height, athletic appearance, and the
affect of the person drawn.
Related Studies #2
● A study was made by Lev-Wiesel (1999) to identify common indicators in human figure
drawings done by adults who had been sexually abused during childhood.
○ Group 1 consisted of ten males, in the process of recovering from alcohol or drug
abuse, who had revealed during therapy sessions that they had experienced
childhood sexual abuse.
○ Group 2 was made up of ten women, self-described survivors of sexual abuse, who
had been referred to a family therapy center for behavioral or marital problems.
○ Group 3 was the control, and consisted of ten men and ten women (the latter were
clients in the family therapy center for behavioral and family difficulties) who
regarded their childhood as normal and satisfying, and who had not experienced
physical or sexual abuse.
Related Studies #2 (con’t)
Significant results:

1. Face line: double chin or cheek, either empty or shaded, was found in all of the
drawings of the sexual abuse survivors
2. Eyes: shaded, hollow, dot, or omitted eyes were found in most subjects in
groups 1 and 2
3. Genitals: in most members of groups I and 2, there was the addition of a
barrier, such as a large belt, between the lower and upper body
4. Hands and arms: in most of the drawings in groups 1 and 2, these were
clinging, cut-off, detached, or omitted, in contrast to the control group
members
Related Studies #3
Worden’s (1985) case study aimed to illustrate the diagnostic and therapeutic value
of human figure drawings. It compared two projective techniques - DAP and KFD,
which were both administered to an 11-year of a boy recovering from viral
encephalitis. Results show that conjointly administering the DAP and KFD offers the
clinician several advantages as each technique appears to tap distinct aspects of
the self. Burns (1982) hypothesized that the DAP measures the environmental self
while the KFD self “represents as an expression of self as formed in early life” (p.17).
Related Studies #4
Dickson, Saylor, & Alfred’s (1990) study gave the DAP as part of an assessment
battery to 174 young psychiatric inpatients. Sex of the person drawn was compared
to the subject’s sex, Achenbach aggression and delinquency scores, and scores on
Children’s Inventory of Anger and Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale. The
sex of the person drawn was also compared to family composition, specifically
whether or not the child came from an intact family with both a male and female
parent or role model. Results support drawing of a same-sexed individual as
normative, regardless of age or sex. Personality measures and family composition
were not significantly related to the tendency to draw same vs. opposite sex.
Related Studies #5
Arteche, Banderia, & Hutz’s (2010) study investigated one of the Draw-a-Person test
(DAP) indicators: the sex of the first drawn figure. Participants were 606 children
(6–12 years old) divided into two groups: clinical and control. The association of
same-sex figures was explored in a control sample, while the association between
opposite-sex figures and psychopathology was investigated in a clinical sample.
More than 70% of children drew figures of their own sex first. Within the control
sample, the frequency of opposite-sex figures was over 17%. Thus, drawing the
opposite sex first was not confirmed as an indicator of emotional difficulties.
Nevertheless, the impossibility to identify the sex of the first figure emerged as an
emotional indicator and a new DAP indicator was proposed: undefined sex.
Related Studies #6
Evarretta’s (2014) study sought to determine the validity of DAP as a measure of
Anxiety and Aggression Indices among Schizophrenics of Hospicio de San Juan de
Dios in Bulacan. Both anxiety and aggression indices were seen though the details
of the parts of the drawing. Results revealed valid anxiety and aggression indices
among its male patients with Schizophrenia. Through these findings, the researcher
was able to come up with an Action Plan for an intervention program for patients
with Schizophrenia which includes Art Therapy, Interactive Group Activities and
Psychotherapy.
REFERENCES
Arteche, A., Banderia, D., & Hutz, C. (2010). Draw-a-person test: The sex of the first drawn figure revisited. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 37(1), 65-69.

Burns, R. C. (1982). Self-growth in families: Kinetic Family Drawings (K-F-D): Research and application. New York: Brunner/ Mazel.

Dickson, J., Saylor, C., & Finch, A. (1990). Personality Factors, Family Structure, and Sex of Drawn Figure on the Draw-A-Person Test. Journal of
Personality Assessment,55(1), 362-366.

Evarretta, L. L. (2014). Validity of draw-a-person test as a measure of anxiety and aggression indices among schizophrenics of Hospicio de San Juan
de Dios. Asia Pacific Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 2(3), 18-23.

Hammer, E. (1969). DAP: Back against the Hall? Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1969, 33, 151-156.

Nava, J. (2018, November 25). Joshua Nava Arts. Retrieved from https://www.joshuanava.biz/art-therapy/drawaperson-dap-examples.html

Ludwig, D. J. (1969). Self-perception and the Draw-a-Person Test. Journal of Projective Techniques and Personality Assessment, 33(3), 257-261.

Lev-Wiesel, R. (1999). The use of the Machover Draw-A-Person test in detecting adult survivors of sexual abuse: A pilot study. American Journal of Art
Therapy, 37(4), 106.

National Center for Health Statistics (1974). The Goodenough-Harris Drawing Test as a Measure of Intellectual Maturity of Youths 12-17 Years". DHEW
Publication, 1974-05.

Wanderer, Z. (1969). Validity of clinical judgments based on human figure drawings. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 143-150.

Worden, M. (1985). A case study comparison of the draw-a-person and kinetic family drawing. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49(4), 427-433.