Kinetic-House-Tree-Person Drawings (K-H-T-P : An Interpretative Manual)

Rating:
Summary: An unproven laundry list for interpretation
Review: For those who want easy answers to deciphering drawings, then this book is a *must read.* But reader beware-- this research is not particularly sound and the original text was written in the early 70's, approximately 30 years ago-- and this book was not significantly updated since then. Hello! Our family values and ideas about family have changed since then, but that is not addressed in this volume. An art therapist worth their salt does not use this type of unreliable assessment to work with clients. I apologize for disagreeing with the last reviewer, but I believe this volume is more of a *must avoid* rather than any type of a classic in the field of art therapy.

Rating:
Summary: A good tool
Review: I started using art projection when I was a psychologist for a child adolescent unit in a state hospital. A good way to engage angry or depressed children without threat is to ask them to draw something, unless they have poor perceptual motor skills. But getting them to draw will tell you something about that right away. It is important to know what to expect in average drawing skills and this book helps with that. It also gives a place to start with children who have difficulty with verbal expression. This is not the Be All- End All text but it is worthy of being a companion to other art evaluation tools. It is for the subjective anecdotal information to supplement the more objective tools.

Rating:
Summary: A good tool
Review: I started using art projection when I was a psychologist for a child adolescent unit in a state hospital. A good way to engage angry or depressed children without threat is to ask them to draw something, unless they have poor perceptual motor skills. But getting them to draw will tell you something about that right away. It is important to know what to expect in average drawing skills and this book helps with that. It also gives a place to start with children who have difficulty with verbal expression. This is not the Be All- End All text but it is worthy of being a companion to other art evaluation tools. It is for the subjective anecdotal information to supplement the more objective tools.

Rating:
Summary: An unproven laundry list for interpretation
Review: If you want to learn more about the use of drawings in assessing clients, "Kinetic-House-Tree-Person" is a great book to read. I was fortunate to have studied with Mr. Burns and his work is outstanding in the field of interpretations of kinetic/house/tree/person drawings. Through this book, I have learned how to interpret the drawings of my clients. The kinetic/house/tree/person drawing is an important diagnostic tool in working with children and adults. Mr. Burns's extensive use of diagnostic drawings with his clients of all ages is thoroughly documented throughout his books. Not only do I highly recommend this book, but his others as well. While many of them are out of print, you won't be disappointed if you are fortunate enough to find one. For sure, you want to add "Kinetic-House-Tree-Person" to your collection of clinical resources.

Rating:
Summary: It works for me in Special Education: quick emotional test
Review: This is not the original I was trained to use but it works as well or better than Goodall's. I use it twice a year and have found the student responses are more in depth for interpretation than their psychoeducational or psychological reports. You can find more quickly where the "hope" level is and put energy into those who are reachable and refer those who aren't. I have collected hundreds of these samples over the years and find most are right on the mark. Of course, it mustn't be used as a diagnostic tool but it works well as a verifier of info.

Rating:
Summary: It works for me in Special Education: quick emotional test
Review: This is not the original I was trained to use but it works as well or better than Goodall's. I use it twice a year and have found the student responses are more in depth for interpretation than their psychoeducational or psychological reports. You can find more quickly where the "hope" level is and put energy into those who are reachable and refer those who aren't. I have collected hundreds of these samples over the years and find most are right on the mark. Of course, it mustn't be used as a diagnostic tool but it works well as a verifier of info.