Family Drawings of Institutionalized Children with Abuse History from South India

Abstract Purpose This study explored how institutionalized children in India express attachment styles through Family Drawings and how these relate to their victimization experiences. Method Ninety-two Indian children aged 9 to13 completed the Kerns Security Scale, the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire, and a Family Drawing coded using Fury’s eight global scales. Results Principal Component Analysis revealed three emotional themes: Inward Distress, Pathological Presentation, and Conflict/Role Confusion. Most drawings (94.6%) reflected insecure attachment—mainly avoidant or ambivalent patterns. However, these styles were not significantly associated with self-reported attachment, victimization scores, or gender. Males had higher scores on the Bizarreness scale than females. Conclusions These findings suggest that family drawings can provide meaningful insights into hidden emotional difficulties that may not surface through direct questioning.