psy 370 projective tests

projective methods

• ask the test taker to complete some task that is unstructured or ambiguous. Pros- difficult to fake, not nearly as verbally loaded as paper and pencil tests, gets information you can't get any other way (the unconscious), acknowledges the uniqueness of each individual 

projective hypothesis

•  the way we create structure for unstructured stimuli is based on our personality 

basic steps of a projective test

• 1. Present the test taker with a series of stimuli that are ambiguous or incomplete way

• 2. Ask the test-taker to describe the stimuli

• 3. Record as much information as possible about responses- reaction time, nonverbal behavior etc

• 4. Analyze and interpret the responses based on some kind of scoring system- look for themes or patterns, emphasize symbolizing

sentence completion

• asking fairly directly about needs, worries, values etc and coded for themes and departures from “good adjustment”. Example Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank 

word association/free association

• Emphasis on speed of reaction- what connections are automatic, trying to minimize self-presentation or self-editing, look for unusual responses, not much evidence linking these to diagnosis or outcomes

thematic appreciation test

• Similar to the rorschach in that it uses pictures and requires the test taker to explain what is going on in them, different in that the pictures are of people in “classical human situations”; both responses and extra-test behavior are considered in scoring; coded for themes (the test taker identifies with the protagonist of the story) and focuses on Murray’s concept of needs or implicit motives

limitations of projective tests

• Require big assumptions (there is a such thing as the unconscious, psychologists can accurately interpret the symbolism etc) and most of these assumptions are essentially untestable, the examiner affects the process with nonverbal behaviors and personality, psychometric principles dont always apply, are they a science or an art?

drawing pictures

• Test has no standard stimuli- just the one instruction, usually assumes that the figure is a symbolic self-portrait, includes discussion about the picture, has several variations