Critical Thinking and Its Relationship to Artistic Characteristics and Expressive Content in the Drawings of Students at the College of Fine Arts, University of Babylon

Abstract

The present study examined the relationship between critical thinking and the artistic characteristics found in the drawings of students at the College of Fine Arts, University of Babylon. The first chapter addressed the research problem, which was represented by the following question: What is the nature of the relationship between critical thinking skills and the artistic characteristics in the drawings of Fine Arts students? The significance of the study lies in revealing the role of critical thinking in developing students’ artistic and visual awareness and contributing to the improvement of educational curricula and programs in colleges of fine arts. The objective of the study was to identify the relationship between critical thinking skills and the artistic characteristics in students’ drawings. The study was limited to students of the Department of Fine Arts at the College of Fine Arts, University of Babylon, during the academic year 2025–2026.

The second chapter presented the theoretical framework and previous studies. The first section discussed critical thinking in terms of its concept, characteristics, skills, and major philosophical and educational foundations. The second section addressed artistic characteristics in drawings, including their concept, elements, and relationship to artistic expression.

The third chapter described the research procedures. The researcher adopted the descriptive-correlational method, and the main sample consisted of 85 fourth-year students. A Critical Thinking Scale and an instrument for analyzing artistic characteristics and expressive contents were developed, and their validity and reliability were verified through appropriate statistical methods.

The fourth chapter presented and interpreted the results. The findings revealed: (1) variation in students’ levels of critical thinking, (2) variation in the levels of artistic characteristics in their drawings, and (3) a strong positive correlation between critical thinking and artistic characteristics, with a correlation coefficient of (0.86) at a significance level of (0.005). The study concluded that critical thinking contributes to the development of students’ artistic performance, that the quality of artistic characteristics is associated with higher-order cognitive processes, and that critical thinking enhances students’ ability to analyze visual problems and select appropriate artistic solutions. The study recommended integrating critical thinking skills into Fine Arts preparation programs, adopting teaching strategies based on analysis, criticism, and evaluation, and promoting artistic activities that foster reflective thinking. It also suggested conducting similar studies in other universities, investigating the relationship between creative thinking and artistic characteristics, and carrying out comparative studies across different academic stages in colleges of fine arts.