Nine-in-One drawing method (Moritani)

Domain VIII · Creative & expressive arts therapies · Moritani Hiroyuki · 1986 · Japan

What it is

NOD has no multi-phase treatment structure. The "framework" is the stages of a single administration, which can be repeated across a therapy.

Format

• Format: individual (one-to-one) or in a small group. In the Hiroshima study, Research 1 used groups of 2–5 and Research 2 was individual.
• Session count and time: Zanka & Ishida (2010) give no time limit and no session count, and none appears in other available sources; Moritani's own guidance is. One full administration plus inquiry fits easily into one ordinary session; do not impose a time limit unless you are using NOD as a…

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Professional frame: no NOD-specific training, certification or society was found. In Japan, NOD is published in clinical-psychology and drawing-research journals (心理臨床学研究, 臨床描画研究, 広島大学心理学研究), and its users are psychologists and psychology students. No published statement says whether it should be used only by holders of a Japanese psychology credential, such as 臨床心理士 (clinical psychologist, certified by the…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Does it use a device, heat, cold, water or a physical procedure? Has a medical professional checked that it is safe for you?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• comparing drawing skill, or exposure of private content in front of peers.
• the client noticing change themselves. Do not present change as proof of outcome.
• notes that differ from what the image seems to show. Ask about these gently rather than correcting them.
• turning categories into labels. Use them only to choose inquiry questions and to compare the client's sheets over time.
• anxiety about drawing ability, or rushing. If the client is reassured and settles into the first cell, the set-up has worked.

Problems the guide addresses

• Stuck: "I can't think of anything" or blank cells
• Superficial, listing or intellectualised responses
• Overwhelm: conflict, ambivalence or traumatic material appears
• Over-interpretation and ruptures
• Using NOD as a test or diagnosis
• Non-adherence and reluctance to draw
• Children and young people
• Group settings
• Cultural and religious meaning of the mandala
• Motor, visual or literacy limits

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.