The Rorschach Test: An Overview

Introduction

• The Rorschach Test uses inkblots to assess personality and perception.
• Developed by Swiss psychiatrist Hermann Rorschach in the early 20th century.
• Test is less about specific images seen and more about perception approach.

Hermann Rorschach's Background

• Rorschach was an amateur artist interested in visual perception.
• Studied connected senses in medical school.
• Developed inkblots at a mental hospital to study perception.

Test Development

• Developed a series of images to understand perception processes.
• Quizzed subjects with the question: "What might this be?"
• Focused on participants' approach rather than their answers.
• Questions addressed:
  • Focus on specific parts of the image
  • Perception of motion in the image
  • Influence of colors on perception

Coding System

• Rorschach created a coding system to quantify responses.
• Categorized people as creative, detail-oriented, big-picture perceivers, and adaptable.
• Identified patterns in responses among healthy subjects and those with mental illnesses.

Publication and Popularity

• Published coding system and ten inkblots in 1921.
• Became popular worldwide by the 1960s.
• Administered millions of times in the U.S.

Misuse and Decline

• Rorschach died less than a year after publication.
• Test was misused in various speculative ways:
  • Used on Nazi war criminals
  • Shown to remote communities as a universal test
  • Employers used it for biased hiring decisions
• Fell out of clinical use and popularity declined.

Contemporary View

• Controversy surrounds the test today.
• A 2013 review confirmed the test yields valid results when administered properly.
• Useful for diagnosing mental illness and rounding out psychological profiles.

Conclusion

• The Rorschach Test is not a standalone key to the human mind.
• Continues to provide insight into how people perceive the world.
• Advances understanding of perception patterns.