The Case Study
The Case Study
Summary, Reflections, and Ethics
This chapter summarizes and evaluates the case of Kevin Ward. One of the most important elements of Ward's case was that Gussak arrived at the same diagnostic conclusion as the other expert witnesses—a psychologist and a psychiatrist—validating the value of the art as evidence. Ward's art could have been approached in several ways: establish meaning through the formal elements of the images, present possible symbolic content to ascertain personal significance, or some combination of the two. But Gussak focused on the formal elements of the art pieces rather than the symbolic content because empirical studies have shown that a drawing's formal elements may reveal specific types of mental illness. The chapter argues that whereas symbolic imagery may reveal personal issues and emotional tendencies—including the presence of a mental illness—it is unlikely that the content of an image can specify the type of mental illness.
Keywords: Kevin Ward, diagnostic conclusion, expert witnesses, art, formal elements, symbolic content, mental illness, symbolic imagery
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