How to pass a Rorschach test (The inside dope)

[JohnnyRingo]

First of all don't take one.
I was all over the place on these, usually the worst possible reaction...Go figure.

<excerpt>
Most people have heard of the Rorschach test (pronounced "ror-shock"), but few have ever seen a real Rorschach inkblot. The blots are kept secret. When you see an inkblot in a popular article on the test (as in the Encyclopaedia Britannica entry on the Rorschach test), it's a fake: it's an inkblot, but not one of the inkblots. There are only ten Rorschach inkblots.

Psychologists want the blots to remain a secret from the general public so that reactions to the blots will be spontaneous. Hermann Rorschach hoped these spontaneous reactions would yield valuable clues to the test subject's personality. Whether they do remains controversial. Many psychologists think the Rorschach test is hopelessly unreliable; others see it as one of the cardinal tools of modern psychodiagnosis. Even among those who acknowledge the value of the test, there is disagreement on interpretation of responses.

Just as secret as the blots themselves are the ground rules for administering the test. There are a few things that you, as a subject, are supposed to know and a lot of things you aren't supposed to know. If you ask about something you're not supposed to know, the psychologist will give you a pat answer as prescribed in Rorschach literature. For example, if you ask if it is okay to turn the card upside down, the psychologist will respond that you may do as you like; it's up to you. The psychologist won't say that many of the cards are easier to interpret when turned; that most people do turn the cards; that he or she will make a notation with a little arrowhead every time you do turn a card; and that you lose points in the initiative department if you don't turn the cards.

See the blots and more here:
http://www.deltabravo.net/custody/rorschach.htm

[Maple]

1. That is the most absurd thing

I have ever seen posing as a 'test' or even a question.

Burn the lot of them, and pretend it was never invented...best thing for humanity all round.

To think that anybody's 'mental health' was ever judged on the basis of such nonsense......scareeeeee...! :scared:

[Walt Starr]

21. Pure quackery, nothing else

This is th biggest reason I consider psychiatrists to be quacks.

[Us vs Them]

2. Rorschach means nothing.

As taught in most of my psychology courses, the interpretation is based entirely on the one administering the test. It is, however, useful like a lab experiment. The test itself is the constant, and based upon what the patient presents with, the results of the experiment will differ. Using this test alone cannot diagnose mental illness.

Doesn't really offer much along the lines of a 'test,' however. More like a theoretical window into the patient's thought process. Not recommended in cases where patient/psychologist trust issues are relevant.

Good link, however. Even in learning about Rorschach, we were never permitted to see the actual ink blots.

[Maple]

3. It means nothing alright

It's absolute rubbish.

'Ink blots' indeed. :puke:

[JohnnyRingo]

7. Have to admit....I'm kind of glad to hear that.

This straightjacket makes it hard to type with a pencil in my mouth.

[Jackpine Radical]

19. Some days it's hard to muster the energy

to gnaw through the leather straps.

[Occulus]

8. This makes me wonder.

Were these administered to the drafted soldiers in Vietnam? The website mentions that certain behaviors may be interpreted as a sign of brain damage. That could be useful knowledge if one wishes to avoid a draft.

[imenja]

4. Under what circumstances would anyone take the test?

Is it part of corporate or national security clearance? I've never been given the test in my life.

[Mojambo]

5. Interesting stuff

I had no idea that the actual blots are supposed to be kept confidential. Makes sense though.

It's a good thing I've never taken one, because I had an extremely hard time making anything out of some of those.

[gumby]

6. The "Gate-keepers" who administer these tests

are indeed the "subjects."

hey....

I am reminded of 'Ghost Busters' and the gate-keeper of the whatever.....

[Occulus]

9. My first thought for plate II [SPOILER]

Highlight this post to see what I saw in Plate II as soon as I saw it.

I saw the hosts of any "Fair and balanced" talkshow (specifically, for me, "Crossfire") playing patty-cake while puking at each other.

I kid you not.

[Occulus]

10. deleted

dupe

[baron j]

11. Always makes me think of the character named after Rorshach

in the graphic novel Watchmen:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rorschach_%28superhero%29

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watchmen

Rorshach tests seem to be pure pseudoscientific crap, to me, at least.

[EOTE]

16. Woo hoo!

They're doing a Watchmen movie?! They better not screw this up like they did with LoXG.

[REP]

12. Why Do Most Of Them Look Like Sectional Pelvic/Spine MRI Slices?

[JohnnyRingo]

13. That's the same thing Jeffrey Dahmer saw in there.

Probably a coincidence though....I wouldn't worry.
Hahaha

[Nay]

14. Oh, shit, that's mostly what I saw, too. Should I turn myself in???

I did see other stuff, similar or the same as most of the normal responses, but they all look like pelvic sections from an anatomy book.

[Jackpine Radical]

20. On a slightly different note, I've seen Dahmer's MMPI results.

He looked kinda disturbed.

The Rorschach was out of favor when I went through grad school so they didn't make me learn it, but years later a supposedly more reliable scoring system, developed by Exner, was developed & it came back into fashion.

I never did get the training, but in later years some of my post-doc students used it on patients I knew, & the results didn't look all that bad.

Never confuse validity with face validity.

[William Bloode]

15. Hahahahahaha!

I always enjoyed foolin' with the head shrinkers hehehehehehe.....lord forgive me lol! I guess thats why they say i'm a border line psychotic :D

Being a non conformist, and somewhat intelligent in a Southern mill town assured me many a trip to the head shrinker in my schoolin' days. I just always figured i might as well have fun with'em.

[noonwitch]

17. I'd be hostile and sarcastic about any psychological test

"It looks like someone spattered ink on this thing". That would be my response.

Then the report would read:

"Suject was hostile and antagonistic toward the testing process".

[DELUSIONAL]

18. Yep those are the real outlines of the blots --

the colors aren't there but you can get the general idea of what they would look like on a card.

I don't think I've seen any rigorous research data on a large populations using these blots.

These blots are similar to abstract art -- everyone sees something different -- and that is the purpose of the abstract.

Glad to see that these are being brought to "light" of the Internet(s).

[Beetwasher]

22. Correct Answers Here:

"Ohhh, how cute! It's a fluffy bunny!"

Say that for every one!

[TrogL]

23. I totally flunked

I got the frog right but everything else was dead cats.