Assesses personality structure and identifies emotional problems.

The Rorschach Psychodiagnostic Test, also known as the Rorschach Technique and popularly as the "Inkblot Test," is the most widely used projective psychological test. It is generally administered to adolescents and adults but can be used with children as young as three years of age. The Rorschach is used to assess personality structure and identify emotional problems. The test provides information about a child's thought processes, perceptions, motivations, and attitude toward his or her environment, and it can detect internal and external pressures and conflicts as well as illogical or psychotic thought patterns. It can aid in diagnosing and treating a wide range of psychological problems and psychiatric disorders. The untimed, individually administered test consists of interpreting a series of 10 inkblots. The child is shown the inkblots on separate cards and asked a set of standard questions about what he or she sees. Responses are tabulated, put in summary form, and scored according to a set of criteria. Hermann Rorschach, who pioneered the test in 1921, did not provide a comprehensive scoring system, but many different ones have since been developed. The most thorough and widely used is the Exner system, called "The Rorschach: A Comprehensive System." Many consider it the most objective and reliable method of scoring the test. The Rorschach is generally used as part of a battery of tests and must be administered by a trained psychologist.

For Further Study

Books

Knoff, Howard M. The Assessment of Child and Adolescent Personality. New York: Guilford Press, 1986.

Leichtman, Martin. The Rorschach: A Developmental Perspective. Analytic Press, 1996.

McCullough, Virginia. Testing and Your Child: What You Should Know About 150 of the Most Common Medical, Educational and Psychological Tests. New York: Plume, 1992.

Shore, Milton F., Patrick J. Brice, and Barbara G. Love. When Your Child Needs Testing: What Parents, Teachers, and Other Helpers Need to Know about Psychological Testing. New York: Crossroad, 1992.

Wortham, Sue Clark. Tests and Measurement in Early Childhood Education. Columbus: Merrill Publishing Co., 1990.