The Bird's Nest Drawing: A study of construct validity and interrater reliability

The Bird's Nest Drawing (BND; Kaiser, 1996) is a single drawing art therapy assessment developed as a projective measure of attachment security. This study examined the individual graphic indicators and overall impression ratings of 136 adult undergraduate BNDs using two rating scales to determine interrater reliability and construct validity. Participants completed the BND, the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA), and the Experiences in Close Relationships Questionnaire (ECR). Chi-square analyses were conducted to assess the frequency distributions of graphic indicators and overall impression ratings in high and low ECR and IPPA groups. Two of 11 graphic indicators reached statistical significance when compared with attachment score groups. The inclusion of a family of birds was significantly associated with high IPPA scores (χ2 = 4.371, p = .037), and bottomless nests were associated with low ECR scores (χ2 = 7.253, p = .007). An association was also found between overall impression ratings and the ATM subscale of the IPPA (χ2 = 12.5733, p = .006). These results provide preliminary support for a growing trend in art-based assessment in which overall impression scoring systems are used with theory-based drawing assessments.