Hermann Rorschach

§ §Worked in a psychiatric hospital with adolescents §Noticed certain children gave different answers to blots in a game called “Blotto” (Klecksographie) Kleck = blot §Died after only 4 years of work on tests §Work used by others

The Test §Only 10 inkblots in test §1/2 = black on white §2 = black and red on white §3 = multi-coloured §Blots kept secret

The Test §Psychologist holds up inkblot §Subject interprets shapes in inkblot §Provide clues about personality, creativity, intelligence

Plate 10

Interpretation? §Tests organizational ability §Includes: spiders, crabs, caterpillars, fried eggs §Holistic answers: sea life + view through microscope §Blowing bubbles, smoking pipes = oral fixation §Testes/penis as animals eating a tree = castration anxiety

Reliability of Rorschach? §Divided opinion on reliability of test §Outdated, inaccurate, meaningless §“The only thing the inkblots do reveal is the secret world of the examiner who interprets them. These doctors are probably saying more about themselves than other the subjects” (Anastasi 1982) §In 1993, John Exner revived the test as a psychometric instrument by compiling various systems of interpretation into a comprehensive whole.

§ §Wikipedia also has lots of information if you want to read it