The validity and reliability of the Rorschach inkblot test

Validity of the Unconscious and Its Impact on the Rorschach

In line with a number of psychologists, the testing psychologist equally projects his/her beliefs on to the inkblot-test when explaining the responses. For instance, in case the subject sees a bra in his inkblot-test, the male psychologist may classify it as a sexual response; while to a female psychologist this may appear as just a piece of clothing. Since behavioral job performance and self report are two different ways through which personality can be assessed, it is therefore not surprising that Rorschach outcomes are, at their best, correlated in a modest way with the data obtained from self-data. Due to this, however, suitable Rorschach results offer very specific information on the personality of respondents that can incrementally and meaningfully add to introspectively assessed or self-reported information (Meyer & Eblin, 2012).

During the Color Project (CP), the primary task of the examiner involves mentally identifying: (1) the suggested codes, but not invalidated by the verbalization of the respondent and task behaviors and (2) the coding categories required that cannot be coded. Questions aimed at getting clarifications should look into a coding ambiguity that is easily identifiable, which could be either the presence of one code or absence of it, distinguishing the code that is needed from severally possibilities, or determining codes that are still uncertain from different coding categories (Meyer & Eblin, 2012; Soley & Smith, 2008).

There have also been criticisms about the Rorschach with respect to its validity. It is a way of asking if it actually measures what it claims to Rorschach did not mince words on the fact that his test is for measurement of only disordered lines of thought (Like in Schizophrenia) and there has never been a dispute about this. But, there is a debatable issue on whether or not it measures personality. Since the Rorschach test is best considered as a personality assessment technique that is performance-based, knowing the different behaviors that can influence every code and carrying out a general task performance is vital to making use of the data obtained from it, giving accurate interpretation (Meyer & Eblin, 2012). Under R-PAS, a price was attached to the alignment of interpretive strategies with the process of response underpinnings of Rorschach performance with codes, their behaviors and their empirical underpinning. Therefore, even when the variables and codes involved in the R-PAS have been used earlier, the interpretation given to such variables is especially different from what is obtainable in the past. Giving consideration to the process of response encourages generalizations from the coded R-PAS job behaviors to the behaviors seen in real life.

The scientific validity of the Rorschach equally makes me skeptical. However, I believe it is a vital tool in the coaching and therapy as an encouragement to the self-reflection process and beginning a conversation about the internal world of an individual. The validity and reliability of the Rorschach are quite low. In other words, the results on this test are unstable over a period of time and the test fails to measure the variables it was supposed to, respectively. However, the test has been found to be quite successful in carrying out diagnosis on psychiatric problems like schizophrenia. Additionally, there is an agreement on how to control the Rorschach as well as the main aim of this test (Meyer & Eblin, 2012).