Differences in Developmental Art of Deaf Children and Hearing Children

The developmental art of deaf children and hearing children between the ages of 7 and 9 years were compared. Deafness was defined as having a hearing loss of 70 decibels in at least one ear. Raters classified 24 drawings by deaf children and 29 drawings by hearing children according to a seven-item checklist based on Lowenfeld s stages of artistic development. The mean score of the drawings of hearing children was significantly higher than the mean score of the drawings of deaf children. The study supported Lowenfeld s idea of the schematic stage as normative for well-adjusted children aged 7 to 9 years. Results are discussed within the context of using culturally affirmative assessments to rate the drawings of deaf children.

Autorentext

Brian T. Berlinski, MS-AT: Estudou Terapia da Arte no Nazareth College. Terapeuta de arte e defensor de mulheres e crianças surdas abusadas em DeafHope, Oakland, Califórnia.