Rorschach Variables

Variables only

Interpret red (+) Pr

High number of prompts = High defensiveness/unwillingness to cooperate OR lack of cognitive ability/flexibility

Interpret red (+) Pu

High number of pulls = over-productivity, poor boundaries, intent to deceive or impress examiner

Explain CT

Card Turning, meant to be a moderator variable for reflections

Can also indicate level of engagement with task; high CT may suggest suspiciousness, curiosity, annoyance towards task

Explain Complexity

Ability to differentiate information and integrate it with existing objects to form more complex interpretations, validates F%

Yellow (+) » highly adaptive, cognitively flexible

Red/black (+) » flight of ideas, over-sophistication

Red/black (+) with high Pu » poor impulse control, mania

Yellow/red/black (-) » cognitive deficits, low motivation, trauma

Explain R

Number of responses

High: validates elevated Pu

Low: validates elevated Pr

Explain F%

Number of pure form responses (validates Complexity)

High: tendency to overlook nuances/subtle details, simplistic

Low: openness to attending to nuances/subtle details, sophisticated

Explain Blend

Ability to integrate information together, one of the steps involved in Complexity, occurs after Synthesis

High Blend: validates elevated Complexity

Low Blend: validates diminished Complexity

Explain Synthesis

Ability to define incoming information as multiple, distinct objects that are related to one another, one of the steps involved in Complexity, occurs before Blend

High Synthesis: validates elevated Complexity

Low Synthesis: validates diminished Complexity

Explain MC

Human Movement (M) + Weighted Sum Color (WSumC): ability to integrate emotion into the differentiation and integration process, ability to bind emotion to distinct objects before integration

High MC: more effective emotional integration; considered good as long as there is low Vg%, FQ-%, FQn%, C, WSumCog

Low: restricted ability to integrate emotion, vulnerable to affective dysregulation

Explain MC - PPD

Human Movement (M) + Weighted Sum Color (WSumC) - Potentially Problematic Determinants: ratio of ability to regulate emotion effectively and amount of problematic emotive thought content

High MC - PPD: good ability to cope with problematic emotive thought content, lower risk for disorder

Low MC - PPD: vulnerable to problematic emotive thought content, higher risk for disorder

Interpret red (+) M

High Human Movement: high imagination, ability to visualize activities of others, high theory of mind

Explain M/MC

Human Movement (M) / (Human Movement (M) + Weighted Sum Color (WSumC)): ability to prioritize mentalization over own emotional responsiveness; opposite of CFC Proportion

High: more mentalization, tendencies towards logical thinking

Low: more solipsism, tendencies towards emotion-driven thinking

Explain CFC Proportion

“Color Dominance Proportion”, (CF + C)/SumC, inability to regulate one’s emotional responses, opposite of M/MC

High: tendencies towards affective over-reactivity

Low: over-reliance on logic, distance from emotions

Explain EII-3

Ego-Impairment Index-3: composite of poor reality resting (FQ-%), thought disturbance (WSumCog), disturbing thought content (CritCont%), and interpersonal misinterpretations (M-, PHR/GPHR). Believed to measure abundance of inaccurate and/or disturbing perceptions.

High: elevated likelihood of thought disorder

Low: diminished likelihood of thought disorder

Explain TP-Comp

Thoughts and Perceptions Composite: composite of poor reality testing FQ-%, WD-%), thought disturbance (WSumCog), and interpersonal misrepresentation (M-). Believed to measure inability to form linear cognitions.

High: elevated disorganization

Low: clear linearity, good ability to form linear cognitions

Explain WSumCog

Weighted Sum of Cognitive Codes: measures abundance of any/all cognitive codes

High: elevated number of cognitions associated with cognitive processing errors

Low: realistic thinking, few cognitive errors

Explain SevCog

Severe Cognitive Codes: measures abundance of level 2 cognitive codes, believed to measure likelihood of severe cognitive processing deficits

High: serious cognitive processing deficits

Low: absence of severe processing deficits

Explain FQ-%

Poor Form Quality: proportion of responses with poor form quality, believed to indicate poor reality testing

High: lots of inaccurate perceptions

Low: very accurate perceptions overall

Explain WD-%

Poor Form Quality for Whole and Detail Responses: indicates proportion of whole and detail responses that have poor form quality (W and D are less likely to have FQ- than Dd). Measures tendency to provide responses with poor form quality in situations that are least likely to have poor form quality.

High: very inaccurate perceptions

Low: ability to accurately perceive details and wholes in the inkblot responses.

Explain FQo%

Good Form Quality: proportion of responses with good form quality, opposite of FQ-%, believed to capture ability to accurately perceive stimuli in the environment

High: good/accurate perceptions

Low: highly inaccurate perceptions

Explain P

Popular: abundance of “popular” responses, measures ability to comprehend the perceptions of others

High: good mentalization

Low: poor mentalization

Explain Y

Diffuse Shading: believed to measure a tendency to respond to stress with claims of helplessness

High: elevated likelihood to act helpless in stressful situations

Low: tendency to take accountability in the face of stress

Explain m

Inanimate Movement: tendency to have anxious ideation about one’s locus of control in the face of stress; tendency to fixate on uncontrollable aspects of environment

High: elevated anxious ideation in times of stress

Low: diminished anxious ideation in times of stress

Explain MOR

Morbid Content: measures abundance of mental imagery containing themes of damage, harm, defect; often directed towards self, sometimes others

High: tendencies towards pessimism

Low: tendencies towards optimism

Explain SC-Comp

Suicide Concern Composite score: measures suicidality

Raw score 8 or greater: follow up about SI

Raw score 7 or less: no concern, potentially chronic trait

Explain ODL%

Oral-Dependent Language: what proportion of responses contain references to oral things, evidence suggests this measures dependent tendencies

High: very dependent on others

Low: very independent

Explain SR

Space Reversal: measures desire to assert oneself as an independent agent in the face of external pressures

High: tendency to be overly self-assertive, oppositional

Low: tendencies towards being overly complicit to others

Explain MAP/MAHP

Mutuality of Autonomy Pathology Proportion: overall measure of attitudes towards others as negative or less than the self, focused on behavior/personal experience

High: low esteem for others, high esteem for self

Low: high esteem for others, not necessarily self

Explain PHR/GPHR

Poor Human Representation Proportion: measures tendencies to distort representations of others in problematic/pathological ways

High: tendency to distort representations of others in ways that are adversarial

Low: tendency to view others as approachable, possible to get along with

Explain M-

Human Movement with Poor Form Quality: estimated amount of thought content about others that is distorted, unrealistic

High: very distorted views of others

Low: highly accurate views of others

Explain AGC

Aggressive Content: measures subconscious desires for power, domination, competition; for some who are very obviously not like this, it may mean a preoccupation (fear) of domineering people

High: likely domineering, competitive

Low: submissive, docile, unlikely to act aggressively to assert self

Explain V-Comp

Vigilance Composite: measure of overall tendencies towards vigilance/cynicism/preoccupation with minor details

High: very vigilant; extremely high = paranoia, disorder

Low: very trusting

Explain H

Human responses: measures ability to comprehend humans as “whole objects” in that they have their own wants, desires, thoughts, etc.

High: good mentalization, empathy

Low: inability to see others beyond roles, physical attributes

Explain COP

Cooperative Movement: measures general desire to socialize and form relationships with others

High: very social

Low: little desire to form relationships

Explain MAH

Mutuality of Autonomy - Health: measures desire to form relationships and acknowledge those in relationships as “whole objects”, combines COP and H scores

High: prosocial and empathetic

Low: introverted with little insight into others

Explain W%

Whole-less: proportion of responses that are whole, a good thing if there is a high Synthesis score and/or high Blend score, a bad thing if there is a high Vagueness score

High: tendency to process a lot of information at a time, may be complex (Sy) or approximate (Vg)

Explain Dd%

Unusual Detail Proportion: measures tendency to focus on minute details in environment

High: observant or vigilant

Low: tendency to overlook small details

Explain SI

Space Integration: ability to combine objects in a complex way, similar to Complexity, Synthesis, Blend

High: tendency to have complex, sophisticated interpretations

Low: tendency to be overly concrete, simple

Interpret red (+) IntCont

High Intellectualized Content, likely to think about things on a surface level

Explain Vg%

Vagueness: “impressionistic” processing style, used to cross-validate Synthesis, Complexity

High: overly concrete, unsophisticated

Low: high fluidity, depth in responses

Explain V

Vista: measures “depth” in cognition, elaboration; has a reputation for being high in depressed individuals who “think too much”

High: tendency to cognitively elaborate on ideas

Low: little elaboration on own cognition

Explain FD

Form Demand: measures the extent to which one distances themselves from their own interpretations

High: large mental distance between ego and interpretations; suggests dissociation with high CritCont% value

Low: ego fusion to thoughts/ideas

Explain R8910%

Responses for Cards VIII, IX, and X: measure readiness to react out of emotion, readiness to experience emotion

High: “sensitive” to emotional experience

Low: emotional bluntedness

Explain WSumC

Weighted Sum of Color Responses: measures composite interest in emotional responsivity, willingness to attend to emotion

High: drawn to emotionally valent stimuli

Low: aversive to emotionally valent stimuli

Explain C

Color Responses: measures extent to which somebody experiences being consumed by emotion when it is experienced

High: tends to be consumed by emotion easily

Low: generally unemotional

Explain p/(p + a)

Passive Movement Proportion (Mp/(Mp + Ma): measures tendency to “daydream” and ability to conceptualize other people in these thoughts; can also measure tendency to be behaviorally passive

High: tendency to daydream about others regularly OR likely to rely on luck, fate, decisions of others, etc.

Low: grounded in reality most of the time, not very imaginative OR likely to take initiative

Explain FQu%

Unusual Form Quality: measures the extent to which one interprets the environment in unique, idiosyncratic ways

High: very idiosyncratic

Low: readily adopts viewpoints of others

Explain PPD

Potentially Problematic Determinants: measures one’s ability to visualize distressing/highly emotive thought content

High: regularly experiences distressing thought content

Low: not very disturbed by own thought content

Explain YTVC’

Sum of Shading and Achromatic Color: measures one’s tendency to attend to uncertainties in the environment

High: good ability to detect nuances OR tendencies towards anxiety

Low: not very concerned about nuances in environment, likely to miss evidence of uncertainty/danger

Explain CBlend

Color with Diffuse Shading and Achromatic Color: composite of C and YTVC’; when combined, they indicate the likelihood someone will become emotionally distressed by inconsistencies/uncertainties in environment

High: very likely to “find things to be upset about” even in fun situations

Low: able to “go with the flow”, not especially reactive when it is not appropriate

Interpret red (+) C’

General tendencies towards depression, low affect

Explain CritCont%

Critical Contents: measures general propensity to think about things that the individual perceives would be distressing to talk about with others (e.g. death, harm)

High: thinks about canonically distressing topics often (although not necessarily distressed by them)

Low: not drawn to canonically distressing imagery

Explain SumH

All Human Content: measures overall interest in socializing with others (similar to COP)

High: tends to find others interesting

Low: not interested in others, potentially afraid of socializing

Explain NPH%

Non-Pure Human Proportion (out of All Human Content): measures tendency to envision self/others in unrealistic ways, spend time thinking about unrealistic scenarios

High: lots of time dedicated to thinking about unrealistic social situations

Low: mental simulations of social scenarios tend to be accurate

Explain r

Reflections: measures tendency to use self as a frame of reference; also measures general need for reassurance due to fragile ego

High: abundant narcissistic traits

Low: little-to-no narcissism

Explain AGM

Aggressive Movement: measures ability to mentalize aggressive actions, attendance to aggressive themes

High: drawn to aggressive scenarios, envisions them easily

Low: averse to aggressive themes

Explain T

Texture: measures level of desire for closeness

High: anxious attachment style

Low: avoidant attachment style

Explain PER

Personal Knowledge: measures one’s tendency to correct or assert oneself in the face of being challenged

High: likely to assert oneself when challenged

Low: unlikely to speak up when challenged

Explain An

Anatomy: measures extent to which one has bodily concerns on their mind UNLESS they have specialized education concerning anatomy; in that case, they may be demonstrating defensive, overly self-assertive behavior

High: somatic concerns OR narcissism

Low: no evidence of somatic concerns OR no narcissism