DRAWING FACILITATES CHILDRENS VERBAL REPORTS OF EMOTIONALLY LADEN EVENTS

In 2 experiments, the authors examined the effect of drawing on young children's verbal reports of their emotional experiences. Children wer e either asked to draw and tell or to just tell about a time when they felt happy, sad, scared, or angry. Children given the opportunity to draw and tell reported more than twice as much information as children asked to tell only. Furthermore, the increase in information reported did not occur at the expense of accuracy. These findings suggest that drawing may facilitate young children's ability to talk about their e motional experiences in both clinical and legal contexts. In addition, developmental changes in drawing skill per se may define the conditio ns under which drawing will be most effective.