Graphic family sculpting as a visual projective data-collection method: an example of South African female adolescents

ABSTRACT

Graphic family sculpting is a drawing technique which is a modified form of family sculpting. Initially developed by Chris Venter, the technique was intended as a projective, therapeutic technique to enable family members to understand and make sense of their emotional experiences of family matters. The aim of this article is to describe graphic family sculpting as a visual projective data-collection technique by illustrating its use in research conducted with a group of African female adolescents regarding their experience of parent–adolescent relationships in a South African context. African adolescent females (n = 30) between the ages of 13 and 18 were sampled through the implementation of purposeful sampling. The sculptings were analyzed with the use of guidelines provided by Venter and were thematically analyzed. The findings illustrate the value of graphic family sculpting as a visual projective data-collection method and recommendations are made for the use of graphic family sculpting in research.

KEYWORDS:

• Graphic family sculpting
• parent–adolescent relationship
• visual projective data-collection method
• South Africa

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.