Rorschach test

Social Processes: Methodology · Types of test

The Rorschach inkblot test is a method of psychological evaluation. It is a projective test associated with the Freudian school of thought. Psychologists use this test to try to probe the unconscious minds of their patients.

History

The Rorschach inkblot test was developed by Hermann Rorschach, a Swiss psychiatrist, in the early twentieth century. Rorschach was a proponent of Freudian psychoanalysis, which emphasizes the role of the unconscious mind. More recently, the test has been used as a perceptual test, and the interpretive approaches, particularly the Exner system, have become much more statistically rigorous. The psychoanalytic approaches are used mainly in Europe and the perceptual approaches have become the most typical approach in the US.

Methods

There are ten official inkblots. Five inkblots are black ink on white. Two are black and red ink on white. Three are multicolored. The psychologist shows the inkblots in a particular order and asks the patient to say the first thing that comes to mind. After the patient has seen and responded to all the inkblots, the psychologist then gives them to him again one at a time to study. The patient is asked to list everything he sees in each blot. The blot can also be rotated. Although the psychologist will not tell the patient so, spontaneous turning of the blot or asking permission to do so is seen as a positive sign if the blot is turned 90, 180, or 270 degrees; however, turning the cards at odd angles is considered a sign of schizophrenia or covering portions of the cards is considered a sign of brain damage. Not being able to see anything in an inkblot suggests neurosis. As the patient is examining the inkblots, the psychologist writes down everything the patient says or does, no matter how trivial. The psychologist takes into account whether all of the card or a portion of it is used.

Methods of interpretation differ. In one interpretation, each inkblot reveals the patient's feelings about a particular person or situation. For example, one inkblot is supposed to represent the patient's mother. Negative comments regarding the images in this inkblot indicate unresolved conflict with the mother. Another inkblot shows how the patient feels about his father. Most, if not all, inkblots contain symbols and images that are supposed to be interpreted sexually. More than four mentions of sexual imagery means that the patient has an obsession with sex. Seeing certain images may indicate schizophrenia, although this is disputable (the famous case off seeing vases instead of animals).

Controversy

The Rorschach inkblot test is controversial for two reasons.

First, because the blots of ink are inherently meaningless and subjective, evaluating the results of a test requires the blots of ink to have meaning in the first place. Otherwise, the images projected into the patterns would be of little value in assessing personality traits. But the psychologist must project onto the patterns in order to give them any meaning and, in a sense, take the test him/herself. So the results of any test will not only show what the patient projected onto the ink blots, but also what the psychologist projected onto the projections of the patient. Third parties could be called in to evaluate what effect the psychologist's interpretations had on the results of the test, but the third parties' evaluations would also be slanted by their own subconscious interpretations of meaningless patterns. The process of evaluating and re-evaluating could go on forever.

Second, although a large number of people with a certain trait see specific images in an ink blot—sociable people have a tendency to see animals in this image; people with schizophrenia have a tendency to see a vase in this image—any given person who sees an image that is seen in an ink blot by a large number of people with a specific trait will not necessarily have that trait her/himself. The Holtzman Inkblot Test was designed to resolve some of the problems of the Rorschach test.

When interpreted as a projective test, results are poorly verifiable. The Exner system of scoring, which interprets the test in terms of what factor (shading, color, outline, etc.) of the inkblot leads to each of the tested person's comments, is meant to address this, but problems of test validity remain.

Supporters of the test try to keep the actual cards secret so that the answers are spontaneous. This practice is consistent with the American Psychological Association's ethical standards of preserving test security. The official test is sold only to licensed professionals. These ethics were violated when in 2004, the method of administering the tests and the ten official images were published on the Internet. This reduced the sginificant value of projective testing. While the Rorschach Society claims the blots are copyrighted, this has been disputed by others who state that the blots should be in the public domain legally based upon when they were first created and how long the creator has been dead.

References

"Rorschach technique" entry in the Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology
The Skeptic's Dictionary article criticizing the test
Dawes,R.M.(1991) Giving up Cherished Ideas: The Rorschach Ink Blot Test" IPT Journal, Fall Full text "
"presentation and promotion of the Rorschach method, concentrating on the way it has been practiced within the classical European" tradition"Full text
Rosen, G. J. (1975). On the persistence of illusory correlation associated with the Rorschach. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 84, 571-573.

External links

International Rorschach Society
Free online tests created by the Rorschach model: by tickle.com, very ample
History of Inkblot Techniques
Outlines of the official Rorschach inkblots, with criticism
The secret test blot set and all operational procedures revealed
The Rorschach Inkblot Test, Fortune Tellers, and Cold Reading, skeptical article that explain why the test is considered to be a pseudoscientific modern variant on tea leaf reading and Tarot cards.
Unofficial Rorschach website
Using inkblots to create secure passwords
An online inkblot generator

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