The "Non-existent animal" method is projective and is used to assess individual mental characteristics, study self-esteem and self-attitude. It can be applied to almost all age groups, from preschool.
Instructions
A sheet of clean paper, soft colored pencils and an eraser are placed in front of the test subject.
The task cannot be done with a felt-tip pen, pen and paints, since the degree of pressure on the pencil is also important for interpretation. Then the instruction follows: “Draw a non-existent animal, give it a name and tell about it.”
Interpretation
The Non-Existent Animal technique is focused on using even the smallest details in the interpretation.
Position on the image sheet
Normally, the drawing should be located along the midline, and the sheet itself should be vertical. If the position of the picture is shifted up, then this can be interpreted as high self-esteem, when combined with other characteristics, the interpretation is different - dissatisfactionposition in the world. Such a person tends to self-affirmation. If the picture is more focused on the bottom of the page, then we can talk about insecurity, low self-esteem, depression.
Head (replacing part)
The "Non-existent animal" technique is interesting because the head can acquire
completely unusual shapes. However, if this part is turned to the right, it can be assumed that the drawing was drawn by an active person, and everything that he plans is most often carried out. The subject is not afraid to realize their ideas. If the head is turned to the left, then the subject is prone to reflection, reflection. Perhaps there is a fear of activity (requires clarification in other details). If the head is directed at the drawing, then this can be interpreted as egocentrism.
The main sense organs should be present on the head. Ears speak about how a person perceives information. For example, big ears indicate that a curious person, “like a sponge”, perceives the flows of information received. The mouth speaks of speech activity. The more carefully this detail is drawn, the more this property is expressed. You can talk about human fears by the eyes. The larger the iris, the stronger the subject experiences this feeling. The Non-Existent Animal technique sometimes leads to the fact that additional details have to be interpreted. For example, horns. When combined with various additional drawings, they can indicate either aggression or defense.
Legs, paws,pedestal
Considering these details, it is worth dwelling on their proportions in relation to other figure sizes. According to them, one can judge deliberation or, conversely, frivolity, rationality and superficiality of judgments. The projective technique "Non-existent animal" can also show the level of control over the judgments of the subject, his behavior. This is evidenced by the way the legs are connected to the body. Uniformity, one-pointedness speak of the conformity of judgments.
Tail
This part expresses a person's attitude to his own actions, decisions, which are shown by the "Non-existent animal" technique. Interpretation: with the tail turned to the right, we will see the attitude to our own actions, to the left - to thoughts. And positive and negative coloring finds its expression in whether the tail is up or down.
Total energy
This figure is measured by the number of parts shown. The more elements, the higher the energy. In addition, functional or decorating details may be present. If they are present, we can talk about the energy of covering different areas of human activity.
