The development of spatial representation in children from five to thirteen years of age.

Piaget and Inhelder, and Lowenfeld proposed theories on the development of spatial representation based on certain features present in children's drawings. The purpose of the present study was to provide an objective evaluation of these theories. Three raters examined drawings from children (N = 107) ages five to 13 for 38 of Lowenfeld's and Piaget's structural features included in the categories of Composition, Dimension, and Meaning. A confusion matrix and an index of rater reliability were used to assess the reliability of each feature. A structured key-word and chi-square analysis of the 23 reliably rated features produced a three-period model of spatial development similar to the theories presented by Piaget and Lowenfeld. Implications for future research were discussed, and children's drawings were suggested as diagnostic screening tools for the evaluation of children's overall development.