TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE AN INSTRUMENT FOR IDENTIFYING CREATIVITY IN PREADOLESCENTS, 19 SUBJECTS, 17 OF WHOM WERE TEACHERS EVALUATED EIGHT DRAWINGS BY 10-12 YEAR OLDS USING THE FIVE POINT ROUSE SCALE. THIS SCALE COUNSISTS OF A SERIES OF DESCRIPTIONS OF GRAPHIC AND PLASTIC ARTS COVERING 20 ITEMS, SUCH AS SHAPE, TEXTURE, UNITY, ORIGINALITY, AND REALISM. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS WAS USED TO CLARIFY RESULTS. THE ROUSE SCALE WAS THEN MODIFIED, AND THE REVISED SCALE USED BY A SECOND SAMPLE OF 16 SUBJECTS. MATERIALS WERE IDENTICAL EXCEPT FOR A SET OF CARDS DESIGNED TO HELP SUBJECTS FOCUS ON THE AREA CONSIDERED. THE SUBJECTS WERE FIRST ASKED TO CHOOSE THE PICTURE IN WHICH THE ARTIST HAD THE MOST ORIGINAL INTENTION AND THEN CHOOSE THE PICTURE WITH THE MOST ARTISTIC MERIT. THEY WERE THEN ASKED TO MAKE THE SAME TWO CHOICES FOR TECHNIQUE AND MESSAGE. SUBJECTS WERE ABLE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE TWO FACTORS IN A GLOBAL, RATHER THAN SPECIFIC, WAY. THEY ALSO SAID THAT ORIGINAL ART IS CONTEMPORARY, ABSTRACT AND SPONTANEOUS, WHILE ART WITH ARTISTIC MERIT IS OLD, REPRESENTATIONAL, DULL, AND MAINLY PLEASING. (PR)