Let’s go back to primary school desks. As you can understand from the houses with smoke coming from their chimneys, a bright Sun visible from behind the mountains, and shaped clouds, our lesson is; picture! Your teacher asked you to draw a picture for forest week. Are you ready to solve the mystery of the completely different trees that emerged?
In the 1950s, psychologist Charles Koch developed an interesting test that could be applied to both adults and children. For this test, which can be applied from ages 5-6, all you need is to have motor functions, that is, to be able to use a pencil! If you have pencil and paper ready, let’s get started.
Now draw a tree. After completing your drawing, we will interpret the details there together.
The branches of our tree, to which we unknowingly give ourselves away, mostly express our connection with the outside world.
If you have examined the branches of your tree, now let’s examine them together:
Large branches; It is a reflection of a broad creativity. It suggests that the person drawing these branches has high cognitive development, but this may also bring about some narcissism and selfishness.
Small branches; If the person you are testing is perfectly normal for a child under 9 years old. Because branches that may be considered small compared to the size of the tree may be a sign of an immature personality.
Spiral-shaped branches; It reflects a sensitive personality with a developed artistic direction. In addition, he has developed communication skills, can easily adapt to his environment and can be flexible in the face of difficult conditions.
Trees with no branches drawn; It may be a sign that the person is dealing with cognitive problems or has difficulty learning.
Branches with fruits and leaves; It symbolizes a versatile personality structure. While the fruits on the tree reflect the goals we strive to achieve, the leaves drawn on the branches express vitality.
Rod-shaped, hard and complex branches; It reveals a character that likes to be stubborn and combative. These types of people may have a strict and angry attitude compared to others.
The trunk, which is usually at the focal point of our tree, actually gives us solid clues about our focal point, that is, our self.
The body is thinly drawn compared to other parts; It reflects the sensitive personality structure and portrays an image that is easily affected by external influences. This person may also often feel oppressed and stuck.
A trunk of normal size relative to branches and roots; While it describes someone with inner balance, the waves drawn on the body indicate that the person has high energy and strong social skills.
Cavities or irregular protrusions on the body; It represents the traumas and inner fears that the person still feels in his own body.
Body consisting of dashed lines; It indicates an emotionally fragile nature, sensitivity and hypersensitivity.
The roots of trees, as we know that most of them actually exist under the ground, reflect the emotional balance hidden in the human subconscious.
Non-existent roots; It indicates that we can talk about a personality disorder. It is possible to encounter problems such as introversion, panic attacks or mood disorders that cause the person’s emotional balance to deteriorate.
The roots are not strong; While it manifests itself as difficulty in expressing oneself and difficulty in controlling anger, the roots extending from thick to thin and progressing almost parallel are the harbingers of a balanced inner world.
Roots overlapping each other; It refers to someone who is confused and unable to manage their complex emotions well. These people often have difficulty making decisions.
While the lines you draw upwards from your tree represent your intellectual activities, the lines you draw downwards are a reflection of your instincts and subconscious.
Fold the paper you are drawing on both widthwise and lengthwise and mark the folds with a line, so that your page is drawn divided into 4 equal parts.
The areas on the left side of the vertical line you draw in the middle of the page reflect situations related to childhood, traumas from the past, memories and mostly negative aspects of the person.
The ones on the right side of the page reflect the person’s abilities, his/her mood for the future, his dreams, that is, his positive aspects.
“Enough theory, let’s start practicing!” Those who say are welcome!
The tree above was drawn by a young girl around 15 years old. This young girl, who is having a hard time due to a serious illness, is surrounded by a circular island under the tree she drew. This situation explains the limitation he experiences in his social relationships due to his illness.
The body consisting of dashed lines gives the idea that this young girl may be emotionally broken. Another issue that reveals this idea is that the roots of the tree are not drawn.
Branches drooping downwards and leaves falling from the branches can be interpreted as loss of joy of life and drifting into weakness. However, the branches extending upwards on the right half of the page show that their hopes are not exhausted and that they still have dreams for the future that remain alive.
Another drawing of ours belongs to a 12-year-old child.
We see that this child, who is successful and can manage his talents well, draws the tree in a simple and simple way. This tells us that he likes to take things easy. The fences surrounding the minimal tree he draws are actually a reflection of the child being raised with an overprotective attitude.
In order to understand the inner world of children, you can analyze them better by applying this test to both yourself and those around you. Don’t forget to share your conclusions from the tree test with us in the comments!
Other psychology tests that might interest you:
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