The Relation Between Human Figure Drawing and Test Anxiety in Children

Abstract

Summary To assess the validity of the Human-Figure Drawing Projective Test (HFD) as a measure of test anxiety, 27 HFD scoring indices were developed, yielding a total HFD score, cautiousness subscale, and poor-planning subscale. Fifty-seven girls and 76 boys from grades five and six each completed four HFD tests, a test-anxiety and defensiveness questionnaire, and a problem-solving task which yielded four behavioral measures. Correlations between all measures, and step-wise regression analyses using subscale measures, six independent measures of anxiety, and IQ were obtained. Total HFD scores were related to self-reported test anxiety (r = .40), defensiveness (r = .24) and response latency in problem solving (r = .91), but individual HFD indices and subscales had little predictive value.