Simple Categorization of Human Figure Drawings at 5 Years of Age as an Indicator of Developmental Delay

• Published in: Developmental neurorehabilitation Vol. 22; no. 7; pp. 479 - 486
• Main Authors: Tükel, Ş., Eliasson, A.C., Böhm, B., Smedler, A.C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Taylor & Francis 03.10.2019
• Subjects: Developmental delay; fine motor control; human figure drawing; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; preterm children; Psychology; psykologi; visual perception; human figure drawing; preterm children; visual perception; Developmental delay; fine motor control
• ISSN: 1751-8423; 1751-8431; 1751-8431
• DOI: 10.1080/17518423.2018.1532969

Purpose: To elucidate the association between developmental stage of human figure drawing(HFD) and fine motor control, visual perception, and further investigate its potential to be used for screening developmental delay. Methods: Participants were 301 children at 5½ years of age, 176 born preterm and 125 at term, whose HFDs were categorized into six developmental stages. Motor-Free-Visual-Perception Test, Movement-ABC, Performance Intelligence Quotient (PIQ: Wechsler Scale), and the Visual-Motor Integration test were used. Fine motor functions were explored using ImageJ. Results: Age-expected HFDs were drawn by 87% of the children, while 13%, mostly preterm boys, drew immature ones. Stages of HFD were related to both PIQ and Movement-ABC. Visuomotor control and visual perception significantly explained the HFD. The sensitivity and specificity of HFD as a screening tool was moderate to good. Conclusions: HFD is influenced by visual perception and visuomotor control and can be used for screening developmental delay at preschool age.