Abstract

Abstract: Visual arts, especially paintings, are used in rehabilitation centers for production-based art therapy interventions and artistic education for people with special needs. It is necessary to have a tool for “measuring the level of drawing ability and level determination in visual arts”.
Objective: The purpose of this study was to validate the HOMA (Iranian disabled artist) test for people with special needs.
Method: This is a descriptive-exploratory study. Using randomized cluster sampling, 490 subjects with mental retardation and autism spectrum disorder –ASD (covered by the Welfare Organization in 14 provinces of the country) were selected and answered the test. The test evaluates 16 design tasks based on the principles of visual art.
Results: Findings show that the reliability coefficient of is 0.965 using internal consistency method. The Varimax rotation of factors indicates that the theoretical structure of the questionnaire is a saturated overall factor that explains 67.83% of the total variance of the test. Two types of percent and categorical norms also indicate that the test has an acceptable validity.
Conclusion: This test is short, simple and applicable, with appropriate reliability and validity, for recognizing and measuring the ability to draw and determining the level in visual arts (especially painting) for this group.
One can use this test at art therapy and rehabilitation workshops.
Keywords: Accreditation Drawing Recognition Test, People with Special Needs, Art Therapy; Painting Therapy; Visual Arts