Children’s drawings of their own family structure. An approach to drawing as social mediator in relationships

Abstract

This research aims to analyse the notion of family held by today’s children and how this is illustrated through their drawings. The study was carried out using a sample of boys and girls aged between 4 and 6 years old from three schools, two state and one private, in Granada (Spain). The research was carried out on a qualitative basis. The following procedures were used to collect data: 100 drawings were collected plus more or less the same number of video interviews, plus visual observation and field notes. This ensured that both the creative process and the children’s views could be monitored. The study showed that the children were able to produce a visual concept of a nuclear family, in which, out of the two parents, the father was shown as being the one least involved in domestic tasks; the mother, on the other hand, was more often depicted as being closely connected with domestic tasks and childcare. They showed absolutely no awareness of other family arrangements, specifically of families with same-sex parents.