What does it mean when a 9 yr. old draws at a 4 yr old level? Interpreting / rating the "Draw a person" test.

Question

I have a Master's Degree in Counseling and Community Psychology, and am familiar with the "Draw-A-Person" test. I was counseling a 9 year old male, and found it interesting that when he drew people (family members, himself, etc.), he drew them at the developmental drawing level of a much younger child (about 4 -- just a head, with two arms and two legs sticking out from the head. The faces only had eyes on them, not any other details--again, the steriotypical drawing of a child of about age 4.)
My guess is that this is due to his emotional immaturity, plus the social rejection and bullying he's experienced as a result of it.
He has immature reactions to social situations. His mom also babies him a lot. For example, his mom, in an attempt to help the situation, attended school with him one day (3rd grader). Instead of being mortified, he loved having her there, saying she made him feel safe.
Anyone want to weigh in on this one? Anything obvious I might be overlooking?

Answer 1

The drawing could also be more easily accounted for by a lack of skills in visual representations and interpretations. Although, to be drawing in such a stereotyped manner at the age of 9 probably is more indicative of environmental or, even, developmental issues.

I'd suggest consulting with a colleague specializing in child development.

Also, clearly, a lot of work will need to be done with the parents, as well.

Answer 2

I think you are confusing biological age with psychological age. Those tests are only a gauge as to what approximate level the person is at.

For one thing, the technical skills needed to render a more accurate picture are not something many people develop. Even many 'normal' adults would show levels of 'immaturity' when given the test.

Another thing to remember is that determining what is 'appropriate' for a certain child at a certain age is quite relative: even particularly slow or gifted students may be placed in situations where their abilities (or hindrances) are gauged more prominantly then needed. A kindergartener who can read at a 4th or 5th grade level, for instance, may be intellectually prepared for the work but not emotionally and psychologically. Likewise, a child who is slow in school may be having problems because the social expectation at school is at a point beyond their capability.

Saying that he has an 'immature' reaction to social situations could be like trying to make a 4' 8" person try to fit into clothes made for someone 5' 7". Because others (namely his peers) are trying to 'force' him into a certain social understanding, it could be that it is actually 'retarding' his progress: the colder it is outside, the harder it is to motivate yourself to go out.

School is as much about conforming to 'ambiguous' social norms as it is learning how to write and do arithmitic. I say ambiguous because the norms are 'child-enforced' based upon the group consensus. So if a majority of the kids exist under a certain social bell-curve, the extreme cases are 1) singled out as examples to the others to conform and/or 2) given enough attention until they are no longer the 'squeaky' wheel.

Consequently, because the child does not find acceptance at school, because the social repercussions are 'too extreme' for them to handle socially, emotionally and/or psychologically, they are instead thrown/forced back into environments where they do feel 'accepted'. The more extreme they are made to feel that the 'norm' is, the less likely they are to be motivated to become part of it.

Imagine, if you will, an adolescent 'test' where the children had to walk over a small bed of hot coals to be 'accepted'. The ones who had little or no difficulty (an extreme example) would be the one's motivating the others since they would take up positions of social 'importance'. However, most kids would fall under the 'difficult' category, which means that the kids with the most difficulty achieving it would actually be closer to the 'normal'. This is because 'failure' is not the abnormal example, success is.

Gymnasts are not the 'norm'; they are the extreme, because failure is easier to attain (and therefore will garner the most placements) than success. But in social settings, the reverse happens. It becomes the lottery affect, where a small 'abnormal' group of 'winners' inspire the 'losers' to keep playing, even though they may never win.

If you want to develop 'social' and 'interpersonal' skills in the child, find group activities where he doesn't feel 'different'. Even useless activities such as videogames can be something that is developed within a group structure so that while one is running through Doom3, they can still develop the social skills of support (don't let my butt get fragged, stay close), communication (hey, what power-ups did you get, and where are they) and teamwork (you take the left, i'll take the right) that can be applied beyond the activity.

Everyone is a member of some 'social' functionary, the problem is finding the one that coincides to their tastes and developments.

Answer 3

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Answer 4

When I was taught to interpret the "Draw a Man" test, it was tied to cognitive development, not psychological/social development. Try giving him other non-verbal cognitive tests. It would also be helpful to have him seen by a speech pathologist who can give you his receptive and expressive language developmental ages.