Nine-in-One drawing method (Moritani)

1. Introduction

Version followed: Moritani Hiroyuki's (森谷寛之) 九分割統合絵画法 (kyūbunkatsu tōgō kaiga-hō, Nine-in-One Drawing, "NOD" method), first published in 1986 and presented as an image-survey method in 1987. It is reconstructed here from a Japanese university study that uses NOD and cites Moritani's papers: Zanka Hitomi and Ishida Yumi (2010), 九分割統合絵画法による他者イメージの理解 ("Understanding of others image by Nine-in-One Drawing Method"), 広島大学心理学研究 (Hiroshima Psychological Research) no. 10. In this guide, "Hiroshima University repository NOD study" means this paper. Verified: that study's title, authors and year; the full references of Moritani 1986 and 1987 as cited there; that the 3 × 3 grid was drawn on the sheet in advance; the two cell orders; the title and per-cell notes; the five inquiry questions. That study gives no colouring step, time limit, drawing materials or child protocol. Moritani's own papers and books are not publicly available online, so Moritani's original instruction wording (including any free-theme instruction), who draws the grid in his version, whether he includes colouring, any time limit and any child version all remain [uncertain]. [source: Zanka & Ishida 2010]

• What it is: a single-sheet drawing technique. One sheet (A4, landscape in the Hiroshima study) is divided into a 3 × 3 grid of nine cells. The client fills the cells one after another in a fixed spiral order, then gives the whole sheet one title and writes a short note beside each cell. It is a technique used inside psychotherapy and as a projective "image survey" (イメージ調査法), not a complete therapy with its own phases. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study, citing Moritani 1986, 1987]
• Origin: devised by 森谷寛之 (Moritani Hiroyuki) in 1986, taking a hint from the Vajra (Diamond Realm) mandala of Japanese esoteric Buddhism (密教の金剛マンダラ). First paper: Moritani, H. (1986), イメージの多様性とその統合 ―マンダラ画法について― ("Diversity of images and their integration: on the mandala drawing method"), 心理臨床学研究 3(2), 71–81. Second: Moritani, H. (1987), イメージ調査法としての九分割統合絵画法 ―大学生の「自己イメージ」について― ("NOD as an image-survey method: university students' self-image"), 臨床描画研究 2, 154–167. [source: Zanka & Ishida 2010, reference list]
• The mandala is the tradition's own concept. The 3 × 3 layout borrows the form of an esoteric Buddhist mandala. The Buddhist meaning of that mandala belongs to Shingon/esoteric Buddhist teaching and religious authority. In the clinical method it works only as a structuring frame. The therapist does not teach or perform any Buddhist practice, and nothing in this method treats physical illness. [synthesis, per house rule]
• Core idea of change: as the paper titles say, the method draws out many different, even contradictory, images of one theme ("diversity") and holds them on one page so that they can be seen together and brought together ("integration"). The Hiroshima study treats the sequence of cells like free association in psychoanalytic therapy and like association work on dreams. It helps bring unconscious, many-sided images of the self or others into awareness, so the client can reflect on them. Repeated drawing may also show images changing over time. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study, citing Saeki 1991 on the "change process" of drawing] [uncertain: Moritani's own statement of the change mechanism was not read directly]

2. Framework

NOD has no multi-phase treatment structure. The "framework" is the stages of a single administration, which can be repeated across a therapy. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study; repetition across therapy is synthesis]

• 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. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• 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 [uncertain]. One full administration plus inquiry fits easily into one ordinary session; do not impose a time limit unless you are using NOD as a standardised research instrument [synthesis].
• 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 [source: Zanka & Ishida 2010]. 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 Foundation of the Japanese Certification Board for Clinical Psychologists) or 公認心理師 (Certified Public Psychologist, the national licence) [uncertain]. Practical rule [synthesis]: use it as a clinical or projective technique only within your existing licence and competence in drawing methods. If it is offered as "art therapy", the art therapy rules apply: in the UK, HCPC registration as an art therapist (BAAT); in the US, the AATA/ATCB credential.
• Materials and safety: Zanka & Ishida (2010) used A4 drawing paper, landscape, with the 3 × 3 grid drawn beforehand. They do not name the drawing tools and describe no colouring step [source: Zanka & Ishida 2010]. A non-clinical goal-setting adaptation (MORE+) uses a ruler and coloured pencils or crayons. Whether Moritani's original includes colouring is [uncertain]. A pencil or felt pen is enough; colours are optional [synthesis]. Use non-toxic, unscented materials. No blades are needed; watch pencil-sharpener blades with clients at risk of self-harm [synthesis].

3. Guiding principles

• The drawing is a projective, non-structured stimulus, not a test score. → Use it to open up conversation, never as a diagnosis. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Drawing skill does not matter; symbols and words are allowed. → If the client cannot draw an image, a symbol or a word in the cell is fine. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study; Takahashi]
• Follow the fixed spiral order. → The sequence is part of the method because it builds a chain of associations. Keep the order unless it is clearly causing distress. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• The drawer's meaning comes before the therapist's. → Ask the client to explain. The Hiroshima study warns that positive or negative ratings made by the researchers should be checked against the drawer's own judgement. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study; Takahashi]
• Do not intrude. → Some drawers give abstract or list-like answers, possibly as intellectualising defences. Asking them for insight can feel intrusive. If nothing comes to mind, drop the remaining questions. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Nine cells can surface conflict and ambivalence. → Plan time to settle the client and weigh the psychological load before choosing a theme. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Results are tentative. → The Hiroshima study's content categories and types come from 26 participants and are not established norms. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Respect the rapport and the frame. → Do not hand the sheet over in a waiting room. Explain the purpose, say that skill is not being judged, and watch warmly while the client draws. [source: Takahashi, general drawing-method practice]
• Feed back selectively. → Share only what helps the client understand themselves, and be careful with content the client has not yet noticed. [source: Takahashi]
• Look for healthy parts as well as problems. → Comment on resources and positive relational images, not only on conflicts. [source: Takahashi; the Hiroshima NOD study found positive relational images more common than negative ones]
• The mandala frame is borrowed form, not doctrine. → Do not describe the method to clients as Buddhist practice or spiritual healing. If a client brings Buddhist meaning, explore it as their own meaning. [synthesis]

4. Intervention inventory

NOD is one technique made of the components below. Each is described as far as the available sources allow. Components not confirmed from Moritani's own texts are marked. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study unless stated]

4.1 Setting up the gridded sheet

• Purpose / when: gives a contained frame for many images. Use it when you want a client to explore one theme from many angles (self, others, the future, a relationship) and the client can tolerate a reflective task.
• Steps: (1) Use one A4 sheet, landscape. (2) Have the 3 × 3 grid ready. In Zanka & Ishida (2010) the nine divisions were drawn on the paper in advance (あらかじめ), so the client did not draw them [source: Zanka & Ishida 2010]. (3) Lay out a pencil or pen; colours are optional [uncertain for the original]. (4) Sit where you can watch without crowding the client. In Moritani's original it is not known whether he has the therapist draw the outer frame and grid in front of the client or has the client draw them [uncertain]. In the non-clinical MORE+ adaptation the drawer rules the lines.
• Example language (illustrative): "This sheet is split into nine boxes. We'll fill them one at a time, and you don't need to be good at drawing."
• Watch for: anxiety about drawing ability, or rushing. If the client is reassured and settles into the first cell, the set-up has worked.

4.2 Choosing and giving the theme

• Purpose / when: focuses the chain of associations. Documented themes: self-image (Moritani 1987, with university students); time perspective and self-image (Matsuda 2002, university students); "the other person as you see them" (あなたにとっての他者; Zanka & Ishida 2010, with university and graduate students; the authors generalise to adolescence, 青年期). In Zanka & Ishida, the only instruction reported besides the theme was that symbols or letters may be used if drawing is difficult [source: Zanka & Ishida 2010]. Moritani's 1986 "mandala drawing method" is framed around image diversity, but his exact instruction, including whether a free theme ("whatever comes to mind") is used, was not read [uncertain]. A future-goals version with a different set theme per cell comes from a non-clinical training firm (MORE+) and is not Moritani's method.
• Steps: (1) Pick a theme that fits the current clinical focus and how much the client can bear. (2) State the theme in one short sentence. (3) Explain that each cell gets whatever comes next to mind on that theme. (4) Say that symbols or words are fine.
• Example language (illustrative): "The theme is 'the people in my life as I see them'. In each box, put whatever comes to mind next, as a picture, a symbol or a word."
• Watch for: themes that are too close to a raw trauma or a loss in progress (see 5.3). A good theme gives varied cells that are not all identical.

4.3 Filling the nine cells in spiral order

• Purpose / when: produces a linked series of images, like free association, inside one frame. This is the core of the method.
• Steps: Zanka & Ishida describe a spiral in either direction, following the stroke of a reversed hiragana 「の」 (逆「の」の字) or its opposite: (a) start at the lower-right cell and move counter-clockwise towards the centre; or (b) start at the centre and move clockwise outward, ending at the lower right. They state that drawing in this order lets images unfold associatively [source: Zanka & Ishida 2010]. (1) Show the client the order, for example with a finger or small numbers. (2) Let them draw one cell at a time. (3) Watch quietly, noting the order, hesitations, erasures and any cell left blank. Number the cells to match the direction you use. How the direction links to the Diamond Realm mandala belongs to the Buddhist tradition and is not confirmed in a primary source [uncertain].
• Example language (illustrative): "Start here at the bottom right and spiral in towards the middle, one box at a time. Whatever comes next goes in the next box."
• Watch for: stalling, repeated motifs, or a sudden change of tone partway through, all of which are useful material for the inquiry. Also watch for signs of distress (see 5.3). Fluent, varied cells mean the association is working.

4.4 Allowing symbols or words when drawing is hard

• Purpose / when: lowers the barrier for clients who feel unable to draw, perfectionist clients, and those with motor limits.
• Steps: (1) Say at the start that symbols or words are allowed. (2) If the client freezes in a cell, remind them. (3) Do not comment on drawing quality.
• Example language (illustrative): "A word or a simple shape is just as good as a picture."
• Watch for: a whole sheet of words with no images. This may reflect defensiveness (see 5.2) or simply preference; explore it without judging. [synthesis]

4.5 Brief note beside each cell

• Purpose / when: the client puts each image into words, which begins the integration and stops the therapist projecting meanings onto the images.
• Steps: after all nine cells, ask the client to write a short explanation beside each drawing. In the Hiroshima study the note goes to the left of the cell.
• Example language (illustrative): "Next to each box, write a few words about what you drew."
• Watch for: notes that differ from what the image seems to show. Ask about these gently rather than correcting them.

4.6 One title for the whole sheet

• Purpose / when: asks the client to bring the nine images together under one name. This is the explicit "integration" step of the method.
• Steps: after the cells, ask for one title for the whole sheet and have the client write it on the page.
• Example language (illustrative): "If this whole page had one title, what would it be?"
• Watch for: whether the title embraces the contrasting cells or ignores some of them. Note this, but use it as a talking point rather than an interpretation.

4.7 Post-drawing inquiry (PDI)

• Purpose / when: reflection and meaning-making; used straight after drawing.
• Steps: the Hiroshima study's PDI, paraphrased: (1) impressions and feelings about doing the task on this theme; (2) which image is most important (一番大切なイメージ) and why; (3) anything the client notices when looking at the whole sheet; (4) anything in the drawing that links to their everyday dealings with the theme (for example, with other people); (5) what the theme itself means to them. If the client has nothing to say, drop the later questions. Look at the sheet together, side by side, and let the client explain rather than questioning item by item. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study; Takahashi]
• Example language (illustrative): "How was that to do?" … "Which box matters most to you?" … "Looking at the whole page now, does anything stand out?" … "Does any of this show up in your week?"
• Watch for: the client spotting patterns themselves ("all the warm ones are on one side"). Insight in the client's own words is the sign the inquiry is working. Thin, abstract answers call for less probing, not more (see 5.2).

4.8 Reviewing content (clinician's reflection)

• Purpose / when: helps the clinician organise what the sheet shows. It is not a scoring system for clients.
• Steps: for the "others" theme, the Hiroshima study sorted cell content into categories: kinds of others (by role, or by inner quality); ways of relating (positive, negative or mixed); feelings arising from relationships; a general or abstract image of others; and other. Each sheet was then given a profile type: listing kinds of people; relating; relationship outcome; general image; or mixed (the most common). The authors call these categories and types tentative, given 26 participants. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Example language: not for use with clients.
• Watch for: turning categories into labels. Use them only to choose inquiry questions and to compare the client's sheets over time. [synthesis]

4.9 Small-group administration

• Purpose / when: classes, student counselling or group work. The Hiroshima study collected Research 1 data in groups of 2–5.
• Steps: (1) Give the same instructions to everyone. (2) Allow enough space for private drawing. (3) Make sharing optional, and do any personal inquiry individually afterwards. The details of group sharing are [synthesis]; the Hiroshima study does not report a group-sharing procedure.
• Example language (illustrative): "Nobody has to show their sheet. If you'd like to talk about it, we can do that one-to-one afterwards."
• Watch for: comparing drawing skill, or exposure of private content in front of peers.

4.10 Repeating the drawing to track change

• Purpose / when: shows how images shift across therapy. The Hiroshima study cites Saeki (1991) on the "change process" of drawing to suggest NOD can track changing images. No repeat protocol was found [uncertain].
• Steps (synthesis): (1) Keep each sheet, dated, in the clinical record. (2) Repeat the same theme at review points. (3) Lay old and new sheets side by side and ask the client what has changed.
• Example language (illustrative): "Here's the page you made in spring. What do you notice when you put them side by side?"
• Watch for: the client noticing change themselves. Do not present change as proof of outcome.

5. Handling problems

The available sources cover 5.2 and 5.3 directly. Everything else is marked [synthesis].

5.1 Stuck: "I can't think of anything" or blank cells

• Remind the client that symbols and words are allowed. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Offer a bridge: "What does the previous box make you think of?" Or let them leave the cell blank and move on. An empty cell is information, not failure. [synthesis]
• If the client is stuck in four or more cells, the theme may be too broad or too loaded. Narrow it (for example, from "others" to "people at school"), or stop and talk about what made it hard. [synthesis]

5.2 Superficial, listing or intellectualised responses

• Clients who list kinds of people, or give only abstract general images, tended to give thin answers in the inquiry; the authors suggest this may be intellectualisation used as a defence. Pressing for insight may feel intrusive. If nothing comes, drop the later inquiry questions. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Respond by staying with what is on the page ("tell me more about this one") rather than asking "why". Treat the defence as protective for now. Return to the sheet in later sessions. [synthesis]

5.3 Overwhelm: conflict, ambivalence or traumatic material appears

• Nine cells can bring out conflicts and mixed feelings, so the drawer's psychological burden needs consideration. [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• Before starting (synthesis): avoid themes centred on a recent trauma, an acute loss or a current abuser. Use caution with clients with active psychosis, dissociation or acute suicidality. Agree a stop signal with the client.
• During (synthesis): if distress rises, pause. Ground the client (feet on the floor, breathing, naming objects in the room). Offer to turn the sheet over or stop, and say that stopping is fine.
• After (synthesis): leave time to close. End on a resource cell or a neutral topic. Agree where the sheet is kept: in the clinic is safer than taking it home if it is distressing. If suicidal or self-harm content appears, do a standard risk assessment and safety planning in line with your service's procedure.

5.4 Over-interpretation and ruptures

• Risk: the therapist reads meaning into images, such as colour, placement or a dark figure, and states it as fact. Clients can feel exposed or misread. [synthesis]
• Respond: ask, don't tell. Share only what helps self-understanding and is near the client's awareness. [source: Takahashi] If a rupture occurs, name it, apologise for getting ahead of them, and hand the meaning back: "I jumped ahead there. What does it mean to you?" (illustrative) [synthesis]

5.5 Using NOD as a test or diagnosis

• No norms, reliability or validity data for diagnosis are published in the available sources. The Hiroshima study calls its categories tentative (26 participants). [source: Hiroshima University repository NOD study]
• General drawing-method rule: do not conclude a specific disorder from drawing features; combine with other information; and if a drawing is used as a test, keep administration standard. [source: Takahashi]
• Do not treat any NOD content as evidence of abuse or of a disorder. In reports, describe it only as the client's self-chosen images and their own account. [synthesis, per house rule]

5.6 Non-adherence and reluctance to draw

• Offer a choice of theme, or allow words only. Do it together in session rather than as homework. Postpone if the client refuses; refusal is clinical information, not defiance. [synthesis]
• No homework procedure is described in the available sources [uncertain].

5.7 Children and young people

• Zanka & Ishida (2010) studied university and graduate students and do not mention children. No child-specific protocol from Moritani or anyone else is cited [uncertain].
• [synthesis]: get the young person's assent and appropriate parent or carer consent for the activity and for keeping the drawings. Explain the limits of confidentiality in age-appropriate words. Simplify the theme (for example, "things I like" or "my week") and allow words or stickers.
• If a drawing or the young person's explanation discloses harm, follow your local safeguarding and mandatory-reporting procedure on the basis of what the young person says. Use open, non-leading questions, and record their words verbatim. The drawing alone is not evidence. [synthesis]

5.8 Group settings

• Risks include peer comparison, shame about drawing skill, and private material being exposed. Use private drawing space, make sharing optional, and do personal inquiry individually. [synthesis]

5.9 Cultural and religious meaning of the mandala

• Some clients may be offended by a Buddhist-derived frame, or may attach religious significance to it. You can present the grid simply as nine boxes. If a client brings Buddhist or other spiritual meaning, explore it as their own meaning. Do not teach or perform religious practice; refer to their own religious community if they wish. [synthesis, per house rule]

5.10 Motor, visual or literacy limits

• Use a larger sheet or thicker grid lines. Accept dictated notes, with the therapist writing the client's exact words. Allow symbols only. Check that the spiral order is clear, for example by numbering the cells lightly in pencil. [synthesis]

Sources

Pages consulted:

• 残華ひとみ・石田弓 (2010). 九分割統合絵画法による他者イメージの理解 (Zanka & Ishida, Understanding of others image by "Nine-in-One Drawing Method"). 広島大学心理学研究, 10 – Hiroshima University Institutional Repository. Main source for procedure, inquiry, categories, cautions and the Moritani citations.
• 臨床心理検査の現在（19）描画法①総論｜高橋依子 – シンリンラボ. General drawing-method administration and assessment cautions; it does not mention NOD.
• 九分割統合絵画法で描く未来 – MORE+. Non-clinical goal-setting adaptation; materials only; not Moritani's method.

Cited via the Hiroshima study [uncertain]:

• Moritani, H. (1986). イメージの多様性とその統合 ―マンダラ画法について―. 心理臨床学研究, 3(2), 71–81.
• Moritani, H. (1987). イメージ調査法としての九分割統合絵画法. 臨床描画研究, 2, 154–167.
• Matsuda (2002). NOD study of time perspective and university students' self-image. 臨床描画研究, 17.
• Saeki (1991). Drawing-method theory; the "change process" of drawing.
• Fujiyama (2002). Object-relations concepts.