Which of the following is true of the thematic apperception test (tat)?
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The Thematic Apperception Test, or TAT, is a projective psychological test. Historically, it has been among the most widely researched, taught, and used of such tests. Its adherents assert that the TAT taps a subject's unconscious to reveal repressed aspects of personality, motives and needs for achievement, power and intimacy, and problem-solving abilities. Show ProcedureThe TAT is popularly known as the picture interpretation technique because it uses a standard series of provocative yet ambiguous pictures about which the subject is asked to tell a story. The subject is asked to tell as dramatic a story as they can for each picture presented, including:
If these elements are omitted, particularly for children or individuals of low cognitive abilities, the evaluator may ask the subject about them directly. There are 31 picture cards in the standard form of the TAT. Some of the cards show male figures, some female, some both male and female figures, some of ambiguous gender, some adults, some children, and some show no human figures at all. One card is completely blank. Although the cards were originally designed to be matched to the subject in terms of age and gender, any card may be used with any subject. Most practitioners choose a set of approximately ten cards, either using cards that they feel are generally useful, or that they believe will encourage the subject's expression of emotional conflicts relevant to their specific history and situation.[1] Scoring SystemsThe TAT is a projective test in that, like the Rorschach test, its assessment of the subject is based on what he or she projects onto the ambiguous images. Therefore, to complete the assessment, each narrative created by a subject must be carefully recorded and analyzed to uncover underlying needs, attitudes, and patterns of reaction. Although most clinical practitioners do not use formal scoring systems, several formal scoring systems have been developed for analyzing TAT stories systematically and consistently. Two common methods that are currently used in research are the:
HistoryTAT was developed by the American psychologists Henry A. Murray and Christiana D. Morgan at Harvard during the 1930s to explore the underlying dynamics of personality, such as internal conflicts, dominant drives, interests, and motives. According to Melville scholar Howard P Vincent, the TAT “came into being when Dr. Henry A. Murray, psychologist and Melvillist , adapted the implicit lesson of Melville's [Moby Dick] “Doubloon” chapter to a new and larger creative, therapeutic purpose.” After World War II, the TAT was adopted more broadly by psychoanalysts and clinicians to evaluate emotionally disturbed patients. Later, in the 1970s, the Human Potential Movement encouraged psychologists to use the TAT to help their clients understand themselves better and stimulate personal growth. CriticismsDeclining adherence to the Freudian principle of repression on which the test is based has caused the TAT to be criticized as false or outdated by some professional psychologists[citation needed]. Their criticisms are that the TAT is unscientific because it cannot be proved to be valid (that it actually measures what it claims to measure), or reliable (that it gives consistent results over time, due to the challenge of standardizing interpretations of the narratives provided by subjects). Some critics of the TAT cards have observed that the characters and environments are dated, even ‘old-fashioned,' creating a ‘cultural or psycho-social distance' between the patients and the stimuli that makes identifying with them less likely [4]. Also, in researching the responses of subjects given photographs versus the TAT, researchers found that the TAT cards evoked more ‘deviant' stories (i.e., more negative) than photographs, leading researchers to conclude that the difference was due to the differences in the characteristics of the images used as stimuli[citation needed]. In a 2005 dissertation,[5] Matthew Narron, Psy.D. attempted to address these issues by reproducing a Leopold Bellak [6] 10 card set photographically and performing an outcome study. The results concluded that the old TAT elicited answers that included many more specific time references than the new TAT. Contemporary applications of TATDespite criticisms, the TAT remains widely used as a tool for research into areas of psychology such as dreams, fantasies, mate selection and what motivates people to choose their occupation. Sometimes it is used in a psychiatric or psychological context to assess personality disorders, thought disorders, in forensic examinations to evaluate crime suspects, or to screen candidates for high-stress occupations. It is also commonly used in routine psychological evaluations, typically without a formal scoring system, as a way to explore emotional conflicts and object relations [7]. TAT is widely used in France and Argentina using a psychodynamic approach. The Israeli army uses the test for evaluating potential officers.[citation needed] It is also used by the Services Selection Board of India.[citation needed] TAT in popular culture
Charlie Gordon, the protagonist in Daniel Keyes' Flowers for Algernon, notes in his progress report 4 on March 6 that he was given a "Thematic Appreciation Test." As he says, "I dont know the frist 2 werds but I know what test means. You got to pass it or you get bad marks [sic]"
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What does the Thematic Apperception Test TAT measure?The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) is useful in revealing a patient's dominant motivations, emotions, and core personality conflicts. The TAT consists of a series of 20 cards depicting people in various interpersonal interactions that were intentionally created to be ambiguous.
What is the Thematic Apperception Test TAT quizlet?Thematic apperception test is a projective psychological test. Proponents of the technique assert that subjects' responses, in the narratives they make up about ambiguous pictures of people, reveal their underlying motives, concerns, and the way they see the social world.
Which of the following is a feature of the Thematic Apperception Test quizlet?Which of the following is an essential feature of the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)? Subjects are given an ambiguous stimulus and asked to describe and interpret what is going on.
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