Photo taken by Terence somewhere in South Africa. Thanks Nissa!
Drama therapy activity: Transformation
Transformation- taken from www.recreationtherapy.com
Size of Group: 4 to 12
Equipment: a large piece of cloth, a toilet bowl cleaner, a piece of theraband, and other items that might provoke creative use of the item
Focus Area: creative thinking and coping
Quick Description: Participants are given an item such as a large piece of cloth and prompted to transform the object into an everyday object.
Complete Description:
1) Begin discussion on the relationship of creative thinking, problem-solving and coping (e.g., creative thinkers may find healthier means to cope with their problems rather than being overwhelmed by a problem).
2) After discussion, bring out one item and show it to the group. Announce the game of Transformation... "take this object and transform it into an everyday object... be creative and think of different ways you might transform this object."
3) Give the group an example if needed. For example, you might transform the toilet bowl brush into a fly swatter, a microscope, or a golf club.
4) Instruct the group that the person transforming the object must SHOW us the transformation (by acting it out) and not tell us. The rest of the group then must guess what the transformed object is. Be sure to tell the group that wait till the person is completely done before shouting out their guesses.
5) Continue around the circle giving each person several chances at transforming the object. After 2 or 3 passes, encourage the group to add more movement and action to their transformation. For example, instead of just showing a flyswatter, run around the room trying to chase an imaginary fly with the flyswatter.
Process: How can you relate the creative thinking you did here to creative thinking you might have to do with difficult problems?
Size of Group: 4 to 12
Equipment: a large piece of cloth, a toilet bowl cleaner, a piece of theraband, and other items that might provoke creative use of the item
Focus Area: creative thinking and coping
Quick Description: Participants are given an item such as a large piece of cloth and prompted to transform the object into an everyday object.
Complete Description:
1) Begin discussion on the relationship of creative thinking, problem-solving and coping (e.g., creative thinkers may find healthier means to cope with their problems rather than being overwhelmed by a problem).
2) After discussion, bring out one item and show it to the group. Announce the game of Transformation... "take this object and transform it into an everyday object... be creative and think of different ways you might transform this object."
3) Give the group an example if needed. For example, you might transform the toilet bowl brush into a fly swatter, a microscope, or a golf club.
4) Instruct the group that the person transforming the object must SHOW us the transformation (by acting it out) and not tell us. The rest of the group then must guess what the transformed object is. Be sure to tell the group that wait till the person is completely done before shouting out their guesses.
5) Continue around the circle giving each person several chances at transforming the object. After 2 or 3 passes, encourage the group to add more movement and action to their transformation. For example, instead of just showing a flyswatter, run around the room trying to chase an imaginary fly with the flyswatter.
Process: How can you relate the creative thinking you did here to creative thinking you might have to do with difficult problems?
Open-ended questions
OPEN ENDED QUESTIONS- taken from www.recreationtherapy.com
What one of your greatest achievements are..
My favorite activities is ...
A place I spent one of my happiest days was ...
I go to be alone ...
My future goal is to ...
What make me happy ...
When I get enough money I will ...
When I have enough time, I want to ...
If this weekend was 3 days long I would ...
I feel most bored when ...
I feel most satisfied when ...
I enjoy being ...
My fondest memory is ...
I can really get excited about ...
A new leisure activity I tried this week ...
How did I feel about this week in participating in activities ...
I feel proud when I ...
I feel best when people ...
I am best at ...
I get angry when ...
I have accomplished
The thing that amuses me is ...
my greatest strength is ...
I have never liked...
like people who...
Someday I am going to ...
Some ways to use open-ended questions: verbal answers given as group check-in/check-out, add hand/body movements to express answer, draw answers, journaling exercises, make a creative book of collages
What one of your greatest achievements are..
My favorite activities is ...
A place I spent one of my happiest days was ...
I go to be alone ...
My future goal is to ...
What make me happy ...
When I get enough money I will ...
When I have enough time, I want to ...
If this weekend was 3 days long I would ...
I feel most bored when ...
I feel most satisfied when ...
I enjoy being ...
My fondest memory is ...
I can really get excited about ...
A new leisure activity I tried this week ...
How did I feel about this week in participating in activities ...
I feel proud when I ...
I feel best when people ...
I am best at ...
I get angry when ...
I have accomplished
The thing that amuses me is ...
my greatest strength is ...
I have never liked...
like people who...
Someday I am going to ...
Some ways to use open-ended questions: verbal answers given as group check-in/check-out, add hand/body movements to express answer, draw answers, journaling exercises, make a creative book of collages
Diagnostic Drawing Series
Diagnostic Drawing Series (DDS)
Reference: Cohen, B.M., S., & Kijak, A.K. (1994). An introduction to the Diagnostic Drawing Series: A standardized tool for the diagnostic and clinical use. Art therapy, 11(2), 105-110.
Purpose: Standardized. Combines research methodology of social sciences with the attention to materials, task, and process of art therapy. Not predicated on one model of verbal psychotherapy. How to get the most info in one session. Employ materials and techniques compatible to art therapy. Reflect the affective and behavioral changes throughout the session.
Ages: Mostly used with adolescents and adults, although there is an additional DDS that addresses children.
Materials: Flat-sided chalk pastels, 18x24” 70lb white drawing paper. Designed to be worked on a table
Administration:
1. “Make a picture using these materials.”
2. “Draw a picture of a tree.”
3. “Make a picture of how you are feeling using line, shape, and colors.”
Inquiry: No specific inquiry. The third drawing serves as a wrap-up.
Interpretation: Interpretation is based on color types/usage, blended colors, idiosyncratic use of color, use of line and shape, integration and abstraction, representation of the image itself (content), enclosures, ground lines, the use of people or animals, inanimate objects, line quality, line length, movement, space usage, how the pastel was used, what type of tree is depicted, placement on page, etc. For specific interpretation, extensive training is needed.
Strengths: Of all the art therapy assessments, the DDS is the most research-based assessment, and many drawings from this assessment have been archived. There is even a protocol that controls for effects of medication. The DDS has a standardized rating system and administration.
Limitations: Evaluators must have extensive and costly training to learn how to score assessments.
Reflection: This assessment feels like the exclusive country club of art therapy assessments in that the training is so costly and time consuming. I doubt that I will use this assessment any time soon! I do give the authors credit for finally figuring out a way to quantify art therapy, and I would like to learn more about the methods in case I ever have the opportunity to conduct research.
Reference: Cohen, B.M., S., & Kijak, A.K. (1994). An introduction to the Diagnostic Drawing Series: A standardized tool for the diagnostic and clinical use. Art therapy, 11(2), 105-110.
Purpose: Standardized. Combines research methodology of social sciences with the attention to materials, task, and process of art therapy. Not predicated on one model of verbal psychotherapy. How to get the most info in one session. Employ materials and techniques compatible to art therapy. Reflect the affective and behavioral changes throughout the session.
Ages: Mostly used with adolescents and adults, although there is an additional DDS that addresses children.
Materials: Flat-sided chalk pastels, 18x24” 70lb white drawing paper. Designed to be worked on a table
Administration:
1. “Make a picture using these materials.”
2. “Draw a picture of a tree.”
3. “Make a picture of how you are feeling using line, shape, and colors.”
Inquiry: No specific inquiry. The third drawing serves as a wrap-up.
Interpretation: Interpretation is based on color types/usage, blended colors, idiosyncratic use of color, use of line and shape, integration and abstraction, representation of the image itself (content), enclosures, ground lines, the use of people or animals, inanimate objects, line quality, line length, movement, space usage, how the pastel was used, what type of tree is depicted, placement on page, etc. For specific interpretation, extensive training is needed.
Strengths: Of all the art therapy assessments, the DDS is the most research-based assessment, and many drawings from this assessment have been archived. There is even a protocol that controls for effects of medication. The DDS has a standardized rating system and administration.
Limitations: Evaluators must have extensive and costly training to learn how to score assessments.
Reflection: This assessment feels like the exclusive country club of art therapy assessments in that the training is so costly and time consuming. I doubt that I will use this assessment any time soon! I do give the authors credit for finally figuring out a way to quantify art therapy, and I would like to learn more about the methods in case I ever have the opportunity to conduct research.
Ulman Personality Assessment
Ulman Personality Assessment (UPAP)
Reference: Agell (1989) & Ulman & Dachinger (1975)
Purpose: The UPAP is a projective assessment that provides information about the personality and emotional status of an individual.
Materials: Grey bogus paper, or grey construction paper, 18x24”, Nu pastels (12 assorted hard chalk pastels with full spectrum of color), Drawing board, 24x30” and easel, Masking tape, Stopwatch
Administration:
1. Draw anything you’d like.
2. Exercise big sweeping motions. Then recreate those motions on paper with the chalk pastels.
3. With you eyes closed, draw a large scribble on the paper. Put paper on floor. Ask artist to find object in scribble.
4. Make a picture from the found scribble image.
Taking notes is okay unless it is bothersome to artists. At the same time, examiner must give artist full attention. With much tactfulness, encourage person to not make too much of a tangled scribble. If too much resistance to eyes closed, artist may open eyes. Discreetly, take note of how much time is used.
Inquiry: No specific inquiry is noted.
Interpretation: Put all four drawings up on a wall. The evaluator sits next to the client, facing the drawings. The evaluator asks the client about their associations, ideas, feelings about the individual drawings and the collective series of drawings.
Look at use of color and line quality, and not how easy it is for the person to work abstractly. Is it easy to for him or her to find images in scribble? What is the content of free drawings? Look at whole picture that emerges from the series of drawings.
Strengths: This assessment functions on a kinesthetic level, as well as symbolic, cognitive, and perceptive. It evokes the imagination.
Limitations: Clients may feel uncomfortable making large sweeping motions. This assessment requires a lot of space and relatively unusual materials. Reliability and validity have yet to be determined.
Reflection: I would feel silly making large sweeping motions with my eyes closed, especially if I hadn’t yet established rapport with my therapist. I would like the part about finding a picture in the scribble because it is imaginative and fantasy-based, which is always fun. If I were to administer this assessment, I would probably opt out of the first two steps unless I knew the client felt very comfortable being silly with me.
Reference: Agell (1989) & Ulman & Dachinger (1975)
Purpose: The UPAP is a projective assessment that provides information about the personality and emotional status of an individual.
Materials: Grey bogus paper, or grey construction paper, 18x24”, Nu pastels (12 assorted hard chalk pastels with full spectrum of color), Drawing board, 24x30” and easel, Masking tape, Stopwatch
Administration:
1. Draw anything you’d like.
2. Exercise big sweeping motions. Then recreate those motions on paper with the chalk pastels.
3. With you eyes closed, draw a large scribble on the paper. Put paper on floor. Ask artist to find object in scribble.
4. Make a picture from the found scribble image.
Taking notes is okay unless it is bothersome to artists. At the same time, examiner must give artist full attention. With much tactfulness, encourage person to not make too much of a tangled scribble. If too much resistance to eyes closed, artist may open eyes. Discreetly, take note of how much time is used.
Inquiry: No specific inquiry is noted.
Interpretation: Put all four drawings up on a wall. The evaluator sits next to the client, facing the drawings. The evaluator asks the client about their associations, ideas, feelings about the individual drawings and the collective series of drawings.
Look at use of color and line quality, and not how easy it is for the person to work abstractly. Is it easy to for him or her to find images in scribble? What is the content of free drawings? Look at whole picture that emerges from the series of drawings.
Strengths: This assessment functions on a kinesthetic level, as well as symbolic, cognitive, and perceptive. It evokes the imagination.
Limitations: Clients may feel uncomfortable making large sweeping motions. This assessment requires a lot of space and relatively unusual materials. Reliability and validity have yet to be determined.
Reflection: I would feel silly making large sweeping motions with my eyes closed, especially if I hadn’t yet established rapport with my therapist. I would like the part about finding a picture in the scribble because it is imaginative and fantasy-based, which is always fun. If I were to administer this assessment, I would probably opt out of the first two steps unless I knew the client felt very comfortable being silly with me.
Draw a Person in the Rain
Draw-A-Person-In-The-Rain
References:
Verinis, J.S., Lichtenberg, E.F. & Henrich, L. 1974. The Draw-A-Person in the rain technique: Its relationship to diagnostic category and other personality indicators. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 30, 407-414.
Oster, G.D. & Crone, P.G. 2004. Using drawings in assessment and therapy: A guide for mental health professionals. New York: Brunner-Routledge.
Ages: No age limit is noted.
Purpose: The DAPR is an adapted form of Machover’s Draw-A-Person assessment (1948). The DAPR focuses on a person’s vulnerability, environmental stressors, supports, and coping strategies.
Materials: One 8.5 x 11 piece of blank, white paper, and two #2 graphite pencils with working erasers
Administration: The evaluator hands the paper to the client so that it is vertically-oriented. The evaluator then requests that that the client, “Draw a picture of a person in the rain.” There is no time limit, but the evaluator should remain cognizant of the amount of time the client uses to complete the drawing.
Inquiry: There is no specific post-drawing inquiry. The evaluator may ask the client about the person in the person in the drawing and how he or she is probably feeling. The evaluator could also ask the client to rate his or her stress level on a scale of 1- 10. The evaluator may use this metaphor to talk about the stressors in the client’s life and how he or she feels he or she is coping.
Interpretation: External stress is reflected by the amount and intensity of the rain. The client’s methods of defense are represented by the protective gear, or lack thereof. If no protective gear is drawn, the client may feel that he or she is not coping well with stress.
Strengths: The DAPR assessment offers useful information about the way in which an individual is coping with stressors. It also provides a great metaphor from which to dialogue.
Limitations: This assessment seems limited by its materials restrictions. The drawing also may be affected by the current weather outdoors. Again, this assessment needs more empirical research to support its reliability and validity.
Reflection: This was a fun drawing to complete, but I used color… watercolor pencils, to be exact. I think that this assessment/intervention needs color to further illustrate the emotional content of the pictures. It is really a wonderful metaphor for coping, though.
References:
Verinis, J.S., Lichtenberg, E.F. & Henrich, L. 1974. The Draw-A-Person in the rain technique: Its relationship to diagnostic category and other personality indicators. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 30, 407-414.
Oster, G.D. & Crone, P.G. 2004. Using drawings in assessment and therapy: A guide for mental health professionals. New York: Brunner-Routledge.
Ages: No age limit is noted.
Purpose: The DAPR is an adapted form of Machover’s Draw-A-Person assessment (1948). The DAPR focuses on a person’s vulnerability, environmental stressors, supports, and coping strategies.
Materials: One 8.5 x 11 piece of blank, white paper, and two #2 graphite pencils with working erasers
Administration: The evaluator hands the paper to the client so that it is vertically-oriented. The evaluator then requests that that the client, “Draw a picture of a person in the rain.” There is no time limit, but the evaluator should remain cognizant of the amount of time the client uses to complete the drawing.
Inquiry: There is no specific post-drawing inquiry. The evaluator may ask the client about the person in the person in the drawing and how he or she is probably feeling. The evaluator could also ask the client to rate his or her stress level on a scale of 1- 10. The evaluator may use this metaphor to talk about the stressors in the client’s life and how he or she feels he or she is coping.
Interpretation: External stress is reflected by the amount and intensity of the rain. The client’s methods of defense are represented by the protective gear, or lack thereof. If no protective gear is drawn, the client may feel that he or she is not coping well with stress.
Strengths: The DAPR assessment offers useful information about the way in which an individual is coping with stressors. It also provides a great metaphor from which to dialogue.
Limitations: This assessment seems limited by its materials restrictions. The drawing also may be affected by the current weather outdoors. Again, this assessment needs more empirical research to support its reliability and validity.
Reflection: This was a fun drawing to complete, but I used color… watercolor pencils, to be exact. I think that this assessment/intervention needs color to further illustrate the emotional content of the pictures. It is really a wonderful metaphor for coping, though.
Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale
Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale
Reference:
Gantt, L., & Tabone, C. (1998). The Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale: The rating manual. Morgantown, WV: Gargoyle Press.
Gantt, L., & Tabone, C. (2003). The Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale and “Draw a Person Picking an Apple from a Tree.” In C. Malchiodi (Ed.), Handbook of Art Therapy (pp.420-427). New York: Guilford.
Purpose: FEATS focuses on how people draw, or the process of drawing, rather than the resulting content of the drawing.
Ages: No age limit is noted.
Materials: several sheets of 12 x 18 blank, white drawing paper, “Mr. Sketch” markers (black, brown, yellow, orange, red, purple, magenta, hot pink, turquoise, blue, green, and dark green)
Administration:
There is no time limit. The evaluator hands the client one sheet of paper and instructs the client to, “Draw a person picking an apple from a tree.”
Inquiry: Inquiry is based on an inventory of observations based on the client’s drawing process. Did the client include such things as ladders, red apples, and a whole person? Were colors used? Where is the tree placed on the paper? What is the person’s balance like?
Interpretation:
FEATS is a compilation of 14 different scales including:
Prominence of color
Color fit
Applied energy focus
Space used
Integration: Do the objects fit together and relate to one another?
Logic: Does the picture make sense?
Realism: Is the picture realistic?
Problem-solving: How does the person get the apples?
Normal graphic development
Details
Line quality
Person
Rotation and base line locations: Are any figures existing on a rotated plane?
Perseveration: Does the person continue adding details beyond what is typically expected?
Strengths: This assessment provided a detailed rating manual and pictures illustrating the scales. The populations tested were categorized. The manual’s rating was clearly explained.
Limitations: This assessment needs additional and more complete empirical research, especially with children. Drawing a human figure is challenging and intimidating for some individuals.
Reflection: I enjoyed doing this assessment, but was a little concerned because my little apple-picking boy looked like he was about to fall off the ladder, so I wonder what that might suggest, according to the scoring manual. I liked this task, and would like to administer it to clients.
Reference:
Gantt, L., & Tabone, C. (1998). The Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale: The rating manual. Morgantown, WV: Gargoyle Press.
Gantt, L., & Tabone, C. (2003). The Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale and “Draw a Person Picking an Apple from a Tree.” In C. Malchiodi (Ed.), Handbook of Art Therapy (pp.420-427). New York: Guilford.
Purpose: FEATS focuses on how people draw, or the process of drawing, rather than the resulting content of the drawing.
Ages: No age limit is noted.
Materials: several sheets of 12 x 18 blank, white drawing paper, “Mr. Sketch” markers (black, brown, yellow, orange, red, purple, magenta, hot pink, turquoise, blue, green, and dark green)
Administration:
There is no time limit. The evaluator hands the client one sheet of paper and instructs the client to, “Draw a person picking an apple from a tree.”
Inquiry: Inquiry is based on an inventory of observations based on the client’s drawing process. Did the client include such things as ladders, red apples, and a whole person? Were colors used? Where is the tree placed on the paper? What is the person’s balance like?
Interpretation:
FEATS is a compilation of 14 different scales including:
Prominence of color
Color fit
Applied energy focus
Space used
Integration: Do the objects fit together and relate to one another?
Logic: Does the picture make sense?
Realism: Is the picture realistic?
Problem-solving: How does the person get the apples?
Normal graphic development
Details
Line quality
Person
Rotation and base line locations: Are any figures existing on a rotated plane?
Perseveration: Does the person continue adding details beyond what is typically expected?
Strengths: This assessment provided a detailed rating manual and pictures illustrating the scales. The populations tested were categorized. The manual’s rating was clearly explained.
Limitations: This assessment needs additional and more complete empirical research, especially with children. Drawing a human figure is challenging and intimidating for some individuals.
Reflection: I enjoyed doing this assessment, but was a little concerned because my little apple-picking boy looked like he was about to fall off the ladder, so I wonder what that might suggest, according to the scoring manual. I liked this task, and would like to administer it to clients.
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