Of animals, colours and psychology [Part 2]

The next bit of head-shrinking involves pencils. Or bic pens. Or anything you can draw with really.

Find a piece of paper and draw a house. On the other side of the paper, draw a person.

Remember, this isn’t the kind of test that you can pass or fail. It’s all about perspective and the thoughts inside your head. It’s like the inkblot test, or the cloud test. What looks like a butterfly to one person may well be a hamburger to another.

colour crayonsThere’s something about your favourite colour, but that’s not really rocket science. Well actually, it could be, since people have different reactions to colour. While green to some people represents a love of nature, to others it is associated with envy, and yet to others, it’s the colour of cheese, moss or mouldy bread.

I think to use colour in psychology, you have to ask the person why they like a particular colour. For example, if somebody likes blue because they think it’s peaceful, they are probably the non-confrontational type. But if they like it because it reminds them of water, it’s far more likely they enjoy swimming or sailing.

Someone who likes yellow is not necessarily a coward. It’s just as likely they are an attention junkie who loves to be looked at. Or that they are irrepressibly cheerful, or that they like sunflowers. I liked to say that my favourite colours were black and blue, because it made certain people think I had masochistic tendencies.

Liking red could mean you have a daredevil spirit, or that you enjoy stawberries, or that you are totally into love. It could also mean you’re, you know, not averse to bulls of all shapes and size, those with wings and those with … horns.

So, your house. Well, you need an expert to really analyse it, but the size of windows [or lack of them] could have something to do with your world view. The larger the windows are, the more open minded and liberal you are. Or maybe you just grew up in a  house with big windows. Or you enjoy light. Or you are afraid of the dark.

Curtains in the windows suggest privacy issues, so closed curtains suggest a secretive person, while no windows at all suggests a hermit or misanthropist. There was something about chimneys which suggested your’e a family person, especially if there is smoke coming out of your chimney. That suggets cooking or a fireplace, which means you love the feel of home and home-like activities.

The size of the door suggests how much you [dis]like guests. An open door means you love to entertain. A doorknob shows you like people to knock first, not just walking in, since it implies permission. A door with a lock is a big ‘stay away’ sign, since you feel the need to keep people out.

The other things are pretty basic. A mansion means you’re a simple person at heart, while an elaborate mansion suggests you think big. Of course it could also mean you’re an architect.

Now, the human drawing. Oh this has soooo many possibilities. I started to draw the head and shoulders of a man, then got bored, crossed it out, and drew  a stick figure instead. The professor said that means I enjoy shortcuts.

So, since I took a shortcut, I can’t really say what the human drawing shows. I imagine it has something to do with how you see yourself, if you draw your own gender. Or the features you find attractive in the opposite sex, if you draw the opposite sex. I’ve no idea.

But you have to admit, it was more fun drawing the house than the person, yes?

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Crystal Ading' is a professional author, editor, rock lover and mother. Her work is available through threeceebee.com.