Log on to Google today, and you'll see a wispy inkblot. 'Share what you see,' implores Google Search in boldface, offering you the option to tell your Twitter, Facebook, or Google+ friends what you think the inkblot is meant to look like. Except — gotcha! The inkblot doesn't mean a damn thing, and Swiss psychologist Hermann Rorschach, born 129 years ago today, developed the test to secretly figure out if his subjects were schizophrenic. The infamous 'Rorschach test' has since evolved into a personality evaluation, the idea being that your reaction to the blot speaks to your personality type — and so, now, you've shared the depths of your psyche with everybody who follows you on Twitter. God damn you, Google.
So what does your reaction to a shadowy inkblot say about you? Well, Rorschach believed that every part of your reaction to an inkblot image speaks volumes about who you are: Did you hesitate, then suggest that it might look like a bat? Did you immediately see three elephants fighting over a balloon, or did you just shrug and say 'Uh, whatever, maybe a shadow?' Your response apparently speaks to what's going on in your subconscious: children from abusive homes are sometimes court-mandated to examine the inkblot, for example, and often see images of people fighting.
About Rorschach.org Promoting the ethical use of the Rorschach Inkblot Test. Established in 1996, as 'The Original Rorschach Website,' Rorschach.org was founded by Mark W. Matthews, PhD and aims to continue providing an online resource for information about the ethical and professional use of Rorschach Inkblot Test. Rorschach interpretation assistance program™ interpretive report. The rorschach inkblot test: an interpretive guide for clinicians. What rorschach inkblot test tells you about your personality. How to code the rorschach. Com: principles of rorschach interpretation (personality.
Take Card III, for example.
This blot was designed to look like human figures, and measures your approach to other people. If you hesitate on this one, and spend a while trying to figure out what's going on, then some analysts would argue you could be tentative, neurotic, and/or lack awareness in social situations. Three-quarters of people report that the blots look like humans, meaning that if someone doesn't see at least one human figure, this could indicate an unusual response to social interaction.
OK, onto Card II. What do you see?
The idea is that the swathes of red look like blood, and so your interpretation of Card II represents your response to anger. Let's say that you see two people fighting to the death — this might suggest that when someone pisses you off, you want to go all Game of Throneson their ass. And if you saw two figures trying to make peace with their joined hands, you're potentially calmer in the face of violence. Half of the people who see this card think that it looks like two animals — dogs, elephants, and bears are the most common — fighting in the wild.
Don't panic if the blots still just look like inkblots, or if you've seen your worst nightmares inside those hideous shadowy figures. The accuracy of the test has been widely debated since its outset, with plenty of psychoanalysts believing that the Rorschach Test is about as accurate as the Farmer's Almanac. Even Rorschach himself was tentative about the blot being used as a personality test; he'd developed it only to diagnose schizophrenia. Still, a whole century later, the general consensus is that, yes, your interpretation of a random inkblot will say something about you.
Take Card IV:
Card IV is designed to test your response to authority. The huge, imposing figure, which seems to hover over the viewer — is most often described as an animal hide and/or a rug — and represents authoritative figures: your parents, the government, your boss, you name it. This one demonstrates your feelings towards authority, and, in some cases, the male sex. Your response indicates how you feel about the ruling presence in your life.
Onto Card VII:
After seven wildly confusing black-and-white blots, people often express relief when they get to Card VIII, and sometimes say that it looks like a strange four-legged animal. It's the first multicolored card in the set, as well as the most complex, meaning that people who have difficulty processing information often stumble with this one. The breadth of colors apparently represents an emotional spectrum, and some people feel weirdly uncomfortable about Card VIII — in particular, those with a touch of social anxiety, or those who sufferer from emotional disorders.
There are ten distinctive inkblots in the Rorschach test, and 45 in the Holtzman test, a second-generation inkblot test designed to fix the errors in Rorschach's. (It was 1921, after all.) At present, it's the second most-used test to determine personality and is utilized across the psychiatric board — and you can absolutely be court-ordered to take it. There's a small problem, though: because the ten main blots have become so well-known, it's often argued that people know what responses to give before taking the test, which renders it completely useless.
Now if only Google could tell us what it sees, that would be a trip. Our guess: world domination.
Images: Wikimedia Commons
ADMINISTRATION AND SCORING SYMBOL SYNOPSIS
For these reasons, the variabilityin instructions among the common systems is unfortunate. Obviously, instructionsand procedures must be consistent with one's ethical and professional responsibilityto respect the patient's autonomy; beyond that the administrative proceduresshould be minimally intrusive in order to avoid establishing expectanciesbeyond the most complete possible reporting of the subject's thoughts.
For these reasons, the examinationshould begin by clarifying its purpose. When the testing is basedon a referral, the identity and role of the referring professional shouldbe explicitly clear, as should the nature of the report and the party orparties to whom it will be accessible.
When subjects are being testedfor training purposes within a service setting--a school, clinic, or hospital--itis important to clarify to what extent a report will become part of thesubject's record, and what access he or she will have to it. It isalso important to provide a means for such
subjects to have answered retrospective questions about themselvesor about the answered.
For example, a graduate student might say,
'Hello Ms. Smith, I'm JohnJay, a graduate student in clinical psychology. As part of my trainingI have to learn to give certain psychological tests, and I appreciate yourvolunteering your time in this way. Because this is a training exercise,there won't be any report of the results in your school/clinic/hospitalrecords. Before we start, are there any questions you have? If questions occur to you later you can call Dr. Jones at 977-7777.'
Because we believe in keepingthe various sources of clinical inferences as separate as possible, wedo not begin testing sessions with a clinical interview. Such interviewscan be very informative, but are best done by someone other than the testerwhenever possible.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR ADMINISTRATION
Seating Arrangement
It is recommended that the examinerposition him or herself so that the subject's handling of the card canbe observed and so that the examiner may comfortably write down the subject'sresponses and note behaviors. The position we generally use is onein which the examiner and subject are approximately side by side, at anangle of approximately 45 degrees. We feel this allows the examinerto observe accurately while affording some privacy in recording.Instructions
The purpose of the instructionsis to establish a consistent set in the minds of the subjects being tested. The basic points to be covered are that the patient will be shown ten non-representationalstimuli and asked to report all associations to them. The form weuse is approximately as follows:'I'm going to show you tencards, each containing a picture of an inkblot. I'll give them to you oneat a time. I'll ask you to look at each card and tell me what it lookslike. Spend as much time as you like on each card but be sure to tell meeverything that occurs to you.'
If the subject fails to givean association and tries to return the first card in less than two minutes,the examiner is to say, 'Give yourself plenty of time. Most peoplesee several things on each card.'
If the subject gives onlyone response to the first card and spends less than two minutes searchingfor additional responses, the examiner is to say:
'Give yourself plenty oftime. Most people see more than one thing on each card.'
This urging procedure isto be repeated, if necessary, on the second card, but not subsequently.
Response to Questions
Requests by the subject forpermission to turn the card or to respond to only a part of the blot areacceded to as simply as possible. A 'yes' will usually suffice. Theprinciple of minimal intrusion by the tester holds true for most questionssubjects pose about administrative procedure.Inquiry
The purpose of the inquiry isto obtain any necessary further information about the subject's responsesfor the purpose of scoring the record after associations have been obtainedto all ten cards. We choose to defer the inquiry until after thefree association phase is complete because to introduce it after the firstcard tends to make subjects more cautious.It is usually best for thetester to minimize any defensiveness or anxiety the patient might feelby taking the responsibility on himself for needing additional informationand by carefully avoiding the implication that the patient's performancehas been inadequate or faulty. A second principle is to obtain anynecessary additional information with a minimum of biasing structure beingintroduced; avoid suggesting or encouraging the use of specific justifications. At the same time, do be sure to inquire about each element of the percept.
In general, we begin theinquiry as follows:
'Okay. Now that we're done,I'd like to go back over the cards with you to make sure I got your responsesstraight. Let's see. The first thing you saw on this card was _________________.'
The tester then looks upexpectantly, providing an opportunity for the patient to talk further aboutthe response. This opportunity will usually elicit sufficient additionalinformation. If the patient does not respond at all, the tester shouldsay, 'Tell me more about that.'
If sufficient informationstill is not elicited at this point, the tester should say, 'What aboutthe blot brought that to mind?'
If sufficient informationstill is not available, we conclude that it will be not forthcoming withoutthe introduction of biasing structure.
Be sure to inquire aboutevery salient aspect of the response, indicating in your notes in parentheseswhat you asked about. For example, Free Association: 'A scary bat';Inquiry: 'Why a bat?'...'Why scary?'
The tester should specificallyavoid asking the patient to trace the outline of the percept (biasing towardform), and asking about the importance of specific variables (e.g., 'Wasthe color important?').
Testing Children
Modifications in testing procedureare used in testing children five and six years old. Because thisage group usually has not been well socialized into structured task performanceand because social expectations are less clear, it is necessary to be moreexplicit in informing these subjects of what is desired from them duringthe Inquiry phase. Therefore, if sufficient scoring information isnot forthcoming following the standard inquiry procedure, the examinershould ask directly for location and should repeat instructions such 'But,what about this inkblot makes it seem like a bat? Exactly where didyou see the bat?' Very young children will often have difficultyjustifying their responses by objective criteria and may have only a vaguenotion of where the response is located. Further pushing is, therefore,not fruitful and runs the risk of suggesting 'correct answers.'Materials for Noting Rorschach Responses
The final test protocol willconsist of three parts: the response sheets, the scoring sheet(s), andthe summary sheet(s).Response Sheets
Use plain white 8-1/2' by 11'paper turned sideways with three columns marked off one each sheet. Thefirst column should be about 3/4' wide to record the card numbers and thelatency. Latency is the time that elapses between receiving the cardand the first response to that card. Count with seconds in your head; donot use a watch. The notations need not be exact.The second column shouldbe about four inches wide to record the free-association. Record only threeor four responses per sheet, leaving space between them. Number eachresponse in succession. Be prepared with 10 or 12 sheets for each administration. For each response, note in which position the card was held when the responsewas given. Use 'carats' with the point of the carat in the same positionas the top of the card. For example, would indicate the card washeld in the normal position, would indicate it was held upside down, and< and > would indicate it was rotated a quarter turn. All cardturning should also be indicated. A circular arrow is usually used forthis purpose, e.g., .
The third column should alsobe about 4' wide to record the inquiry. Put each response directlyacross from the free-association response to which it corresponds,labeling it with the same number.
It is suggested that inkbe used in recording the free-association and inquiry. The responsesheets must be written so that others can read them. The subject'sname should be written on each sheet. It is helpful to train oneselfto write legibly during the administration so that one need not use timerecopying.
Scoring Sheets and Summary Sheets
A sample of each of these forms is included on page___. All scoring may be done in pencil. After the scores are completedon the scoring sheets, they are tallied and are then recorded on the summarysheet. Section (K) gives instructions for using the summary sheet.PRECIS OF SCORING, CATEGORIES, SYMBOLS AND CRITERIA
Because of the complexity ofRorschach scoring, the precis below may be helpful:The scoring system is dividedinto the following categories:
Location: Blot Area and Frequency (p. ___).
Cognitive Complexity: Perceptual Approach and Organization (p.___).
Justifications: Blot Attributes alluded to (p. ___).
Imaginal Aspects: Imaginary Attributes (p. ___).
Social Appropriateness: The degree to which the response is characteristicallyfound in grossly disturbed individuals (p. ___).
Conceptual Content: Type of Percept: animal, vegetable, mineral(p. ___).
Rorschach Test Interpretation Guide
Interpersonal Expectations: Complexity and Quality of ConsciousHuman-related Fantasies and Less Conscious General Expectations (p. ___).
Psychosexual Drive and Defense Effectiveness: Psychoanalytically-Derived(p. ___).
Perceptual-Cognitive Characteristic: Thinking Style not scoredelsewhere (p. ___).
These nine areas form theBurstein-Loucks Scoring System. These are the areas important to the assessmentof the psychological functioning of the subject. The various scores whichfall under each of these headings are simply elaborations of these concepts.An overview of all categories and scores is provided on pages _____.
PREFACE TO SCORING
The following section will present the criteria forall possible Rorschach scores, category by category and score by scorewithin each category. Whenever possible, criteria have been listed. In some cases all criteria must be met for a response to receive a score;in other cases, only one or two criteria must be met. When all criteriamust be met, the word 'ALL' is placed above the criteria list.In giving sample responses,a number of common abbreviations are used: l.l. or ll = looks like; b.f.or bf = butterfly; a.e. or ae = anything else; ? or Q = question asked;I or Inq. = inquiry.
Rorschach Interpretation Guide Pdf
Scoring Exceptions
Scoring exceptions consist of those cases where thesubject gives a response, but it is not scored in the usual way. Exceptions are listed below.Rorschach Interpretation Guide Pdf
1. Precision Alternatives are second responses to exactly thesame area, utilizing exactly the same justification, imaginal aspects,content, psychosexual drive, and motivational valuation with no interveningresponses and no card turning. These precision alternatives are designatedPA under the Perception-Cognitive Characteristics column of the previousresponse and not scored otherwise.
2. Responses which are elicited for the first time in the inquiry arecalled 'additional responses.' They are scored in brackets and notincluded in computing ratios and totals on the summary sheet.
3. Occasionally in the inquiry phase, a subject will be unable to rememberhaving given a response or where it was seen. This 'lost response'is not counted as a response but is scored LR in the Perceptual-CognitiveCharacteristics Category column of the previous response.
Rorschach Interpretation Guide Pdf
4. One exception consists of a free association process in which responsesare given by the subject but then later combined into a global, largerresponse. In this case, the larger, global response is scored rather thanthe separate scorings of separate response elements.
Rorschach Interpretation Guide Pdf
Scoring Examples: 'a tree,' 'a flower,' 'a waterfall,'a girl,' 'Oh, it's a forest scene with a native girl bathing.' Inthis case the overall synthesized response is the one scored.
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