An investigation of the psychological significance of human movement and color reponses in the Rorschach Inkblot Test

This study used factor analyses and canoncial correlation to investigate the psychological significance of Human Movement (HM) and Color (C) responses on the Rorschach Inkblot Test. Rorschach's Test: Scoring and Interpretation (Burstein & Loucks, in press) provided psychoanalytically imbued Rorschach scorings. Included in the analyses were scores for Justifications and Imaginal Aspects, categories replacing the usual category. Determinants, and scores for psycho-sexual drives. The scales: Control, Harmavoidance, and Absorption, of the Developmental Personality Questionnaire (DPQ) (Tellegen, 1982) provided a check on Rorschach validity.

Subjects were College Scholars and Honors students at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville (N = 97; females = 43; males = 54). Data, collected over three years, were analysed for the total group, for females, and for males.

DPQ scales and Rorschach variables showed little relationship. Thus, substantiation of HM and C did not occur. Rorschach variables did form robust factors, with psycho-sexual scorings providing insight into psychological issues. Canonical correlations showed HM and C to be least related of the variables, thus suggesting that 'EB' may be a good shorthand for different psychological processes.