Examination of Imaginary Picture-Drawing In Autistic Children In Relation To Developmental Screening Tests

The study was designed with the aim of examining the performance of imaginary drawing in autistic children in relation to autism levels and developmental screening tests. A total of 17 (5 girls, 12 boys) 5-8 years old children who has diagnosed with autism and completed all phases (understanding the words, distinguishing the picture pairs and completing the picture) correctly in the Imaginary and Real Distinction Pre-Assessment Study, were included in the study. Autistic children have been assessed in terms of the scores in imaginative picture-drawing and creative content of real and impossible beings/things. In addition, each child has been examined in terms of the screening test scores in his/her imaginary picture-drawing and creative content status, by applying the developmental screening tests; Ankara Developmental Screening Inventory (ADSI), Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC), Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, and Gesell Development Test. The results demonstrated that although autistic children have been successful in defining the impossible picture in picture pairs and completing the missing picture in a way that is compatible with the impossible content, they have been considerably unsuccessful in retrieval drawing of the imaginary impossible pictures particularly the human figures