Children's Creative Expression in Scribbling through the Expressive Therapies Continuum

Abstract

The Expressive Therapies Continuum (ETC) is a pan-theoretical organizational framework that provides a structured language to reflect the creative expressions of ideas, feelings, and behaviors observed in children’s scribbling. This study utilizes the ETC’s theoretical foundation to investigate the creative operational modes in children’s scribbles and analyze the creativity manifested during these processes. Creative operations are characterized as integrative and self-actualizing forces that emerge through expressive activities. The study includes four case examples of children’s scribbling to illustrate the transformative process of creative expression and explore the creative manifestations evident in their work.

Presenters

Lai Fen Yang
Student, PHD, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Yunlin, Taiwan

Details

Presentation Type

Paper Presentation in a Themed Session

Theme

2025 Special Focus—Thinking, Learning, Doing: Plural Ways of Design

KEYWORDS

Expressive Therapies Continuum, Children's Scribbling, Creative Functioning