A comparison of three methods for scoring figure drawings

Figure drawings obtained from 758 white male medical students were scored using three different methods. Method I involved 16 different physical size measurements; Method II involved six separate sophistication of body concept ratings; and Method III involved 42 separate aspects of the drawings weighted in direct proportion to their relative frequency of occurrence in the sample studied (conventionality scoring). Separate factor analyses of the scores derived from each method revealed that Methods I and II each reflect only a single underlying factor, and that these factors are uncorrelated in the population studied. Method III yielded eight meaningful factors, each of which may be construed as an independent area of conventionality/deviancy. An overall conventionality/deviancy score was also derived. It is believed that these three methods of scoring capture most of the variance inherent in existing figure drawing scoring systems, but that use of all three is necessary for a comprehensive analysis.     

The usefulness of human figure drawings as an index of overall adjustment

This study investigates the relation between global ratings of human figure drawings and psychological adjustment. The sample was comprised of a group of Vietnamese refugees who were evaluated at their entry into a residential education program. Adjustment was defined as the number of foster-care placements experienced by these clients during the 5 years following the program. Results showed that ratings of overall artistic quality, figure bizarreness, and estimated client adjustment all varied linearly as a function of number of foster-care placements. A fourth predictor variable, number of Koppitz emotional indicators, did not produce this result. All four predictor variables were found to be related, and it was shown that ratings of figure bizarreness alone adequately predicted the criterion. Implications of these results are discussed, and results suggest that projective drawings could provide a useful index of overall adjustment when better sources of information are not available.     

Quality of drawing as a factor in the interpretation of figure drawings

Examined the drawings of 32 poliomyelitis patients and their matched controls to see whether figure drawings primarily reflect the subject's projection of psychological state, ability to draw, or some combination of these two factors. An overview of the literature is also given. Drawings from disabled and nondisabled subjects were reliably rated for quality, with no significant quality difference found between groups. Analyses of variance were then used to compare the drawings on several different measures of drawing size, completion and movement that might be assumed on the basis of the literature, to reflect the subjects' projection of disability status. Results showed that quality of drawing was a significant factor in 13 of the 17 comparisons while disability status proved to be a significant factor in only one of the 17 comparisons. There were no significant interactions. Therefore, the overall findings are consistent with the hypothesis that quality of drawing-rather than projective mechanisms-may at times be the overwhelming determinant of clinical and research findings with figure drawings.     

Human figure drawing size as a measure of self-esteem

The relationship between self-esteem and human figure drawing size was investigated. Seventy-six adolescents completed the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and drew the human figure. For males only. there was a significant linear relationship between self-esteem and width of human figure drawing and a significant curvilinear relationship between self-esteem and height and self-esteem and area of human figure drawing. The latter findings lend support to a hypothesis regarding the possibility among low self-esteem subjects of a bimodal distribution with respect to size.     

A simplified technique for scoring DSM-IV personality disorders with the Five-Factor Model

The current study compares the use of two alternative methodologies for using the Five-Factor Model (FFM) to assess personality disorders (PDs). Across two clinical samples, a technique using the simple sum of selected FFM facets is compared with a previously used prototype matching technique. The results demonstrate that the more easily calculated counts perform as well as the similarity scores that are generated by the prototype matching technique. Optimal diagnostic thresholds for the FFM PD counts are computed for identifying patients who meet diagnostic criteria for a specific PD. These threshold scores demonstrate good sensitivity in receiver operating characteristics analyses, suggesting their usefulness for screening purposes. Given the ease of this scoring procedure, the FFM count technique has obvious clinical utility.     

Quality of college students' same-sex friendships as a function of personality and interpersonal competence

The aim of the current study was to investigate personality traits and interpersonal competencies as predictors of the quality of same-sex friendships in young adulthood. Undergraduate students (N = 176), who attended a mid-Atlantic U.S., medium-sized university, completed self-report surveys on their personality, interpersonal competence, and friendship quality. Sex, class status, extraversion, agreeableness, and interpersonal competencies were associated with higher friendship quality, but only the interpersonal competence of self-disclosure significantly predicted friendship quality after controlling for sex, class status, and the five personality factors.     

A measure of interpersonal orientation: the Linking People Scale

A 15-item Likert scale, the Liking People Scale, was developed to measure that aspect of interpersonal orientation. Liking people is conceived as a personality construct which serves a mediational function in social interaction. Three cumulative studies are reported. The samples include college students in two regions of the country and a random sample of adults from a large metropolitan area. People low on Liking People spend less time with others, are more socially anxious, tend to be introverted, and are less adept at judging the characteristics of other people. The relationship of Liking People to other measures of affiliative characteristics is examined.