This report presents a methodology for examining perceptual development in the arts and describes a study based on this methodology. The purpose of the study was to chart the developmental course of perceptual skills used in the arts and to investigate whether these skills generalize across art forms and aesthetic properties or whether they are…

Draw-a-Person (DAP) samples from 108 adolescents and adults with mental retardation were scored using Naglieri's cognitive and emotional disturbance scoring systems. Visual-motor skills emerged as the best predictor of DAP cognitive scores, more predictive than intelligence. Findings suggest caution in using DAP as an index of intelligence or as a…