HTP Person Drawing Interpretation: Face, Eyes, Hands, Posture

A person drawing is thought to hold your image of yourself, how you feel about your body, and your attitude in relationships. Even if you do not think you drew yourself, who you pictured and how you pictured them still carry your interests and emotions. Some versions of the test ask you to draw one man and one woman.

• A person so large they almost spill off the page: strong confidence, or a wish to appear that way
• A very small person: feeling diminished, caution, a sense that one's presence is small
• Facing forward: a willingness to face others directly
• Side or back view: hesitation about revealing all of yourself
• A figure in motion (walking, running): activity and energy, sometimes a wish to get away from something

The face is where the eye goes first in a person drawing, and it is seen as the channel for communicating with others. The expression may reflect the mood of the person who drew it or the face they show in front of others. The eyes are linked to how one sees the world: very large, emphasized eyes are sometimes read as sensitivity or wariness toward one's surroundings, while closed or missing eyes may suggest something one does not want to see or a mind turned inward. The mouth relates to emotional expression, and when it is left out, it is worth looking at whether there are feelings that are hard to put into words.

Arms and hands are thought to show the power to reach out into the world and get things done, and the way one makes contact with others. Open arms may suggest openness to relationships, while hands hidden behind the back or tucked into pockets may carry reluctance to express oneself or a lack of confidence. Legs and feet are linked to the stability of standing firmly on the ground of reality, so very short legs or missing feet sometimes prompt a closer look at a sense of shaky footing.

Lots of detail such as buttons, pockets or accessories may reflect thoroughness or concern with how one appears to others, while a very simple figure like a stick figure may reflect pressure about the test or a reluctance to reveal oneself. That said, stick figures are also a common choice for people who are not confident in their drawing, so they are not given a fixed meaning on their own.

After the drawing is done, answers to questions like "Who is this person?", "What are they doing right now?" and "How are they feeling?" can change the direction of interpretation considerably. Even a face that looks sad takes on a different meaning if the answer is "a moment of being moved by a movie."

The InnerSketch person drawing test analyzes your drawing together with answers like these, and shares your current self-image and the way you relate to others in a report written as a letter.