Replica Normative Study on the Person Picking an Apple from a Tree (PPAT) Assessment Using the FEATS

Project Description. This research is a replica study conducted 10 years after an original study. The original study was conducted on 100 college students and was a "Normative Study of the Person Picking an Apple From a Tree (PPAT) Assessment." It was important to the field of art therapy because the PPAT drawing rated by the Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale (FEATS) manual is a widely-used art-based assessment. At the time, the tool did not have normative data to substantiate the clinical claims that the assessment authors made. This normative study was a first step in strengthening the reliability and validity of the assessment tool. The current replica study of 280 people aims to widen the data to a larger range of ages, identities, and educational experiences. To date, the data was collected and analyzed. A paper on the results is forthcoming.

This report summarizes a normative study of the PPAT from a sample of 100 non-client participants. Analysis of the data confirmed the scores for all of the 14 FEATS scales as hypothesized with the exception of the Developmental Level scale. The study also found differences in the PPAT with respect to participants’ mood, gender, race, and artistic experience.

Primary Investigator. Amy Bucciarelli, MS ATR-BC, LMHC

Funding Source. College of the Arts Research Incentive and Scholarship Enhancement Fund

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