The first description of the projection process in a situation with stimuli that allow their different interpretations belongs to the famous American psychologist G. Murray (1938). He considers projection as a natural tendency of people to act under the influence of their needs, interests, and the entire mental organization. In fact, this is the first application of the concept of projection to psychological research. At the same time, G. Murray, who was well acquainted with psychoanalytic works, believed that defense mechanisms in the process of projection may or may not appear. Until that time theoretical concept projection in the form in which it is applicable to the study of personality has not been formulated.

To designate a certain type of psychological methods, the concept of projection was first used by L. Frank in 1939 (We will refer to a more complete study of this author, published in 1948). He puts forward three main principles underlying the projective study of personality:

1. Aimed at the unique in the structure or organization of the individual. Unlike traditional psychometric procedures, a person is considered as a system of interrelated processes, and not a list (set) of abilities or traits,

2. Personality in the projective approach is studied as a relatively stable system of dynamic processes organized on the basis of needs, emotions and individual experience.

3. This system of basic dynamic processes is constantly, actively operating throughout the life of the individual, "forming, directing, distorting, changing and reshaping each situation into a system (configuration) of the individual's inner world." Each new action, each emotional manifestation of the individual, his perceptions, feelings, statements, motor acts bear the imprint of personality. This third and basic theoretical proposition is usually called the "projective hypothesis".

Defining the specifics of the projective approach, L. Frank writes that this is a method of personality research, with the help of which the subject is placed in a situation, to which he reacts depending on the significance of this situation for him, his thoughts and feelings. It is also emphasized that the stimuli used in projective methods are not strictly unambiguous, but allow different interpretations. The stimulus acquires meaning not simply by virtue of its objective content, but primarily in connection with the personal meaning attached to it by the subjects.

L. Frank does not consider projective techniques as a replacement for the already known psychometric ones. The purpose of these techniques is to study the "idiomatic" internal sphere, which can be considered as a way of organizing life experience. Projective methods successfully complement the existing ones, allowing you to look into what is most deeply hidden, eluding when using traditional research methods.

Common to all projective techniques are the following features:

1. Uncertainty, ambiguity of the incentives used.

2. No restrictions on the choice of answer.

3. The lack of evaluation of the answers of the subjects as "correct" and "erroneous".

L. Frank was the first to develop a classification of projective methods. This classification, despite the abundance of others, with the changes and additions proposed later, is today the most fully characterizing the projective technique. Let's take a closer look at the classification of projective methods.

Constitutive projective techniques. The subject is offered some amorphous material, to which he must give meaning. An example is the Rorschach technique, which consists of 10 tables showing symmetrical monochrome and polychrome images - spots that are easy to obtain by applying a little ink or paint to a sheet of paper, and then folding this sheet in half (for samples of the stimulus material of projective techniques, see final section). The subject is asked only one question: “What can it be, what does it look like?” It is believed that in the process of interpreting images, giving them meaning, the subject projects his inner attitudes, aspirations and expectations onto the test material. Detailed, sometimes occupying several volumes, schemes for interpreting the answers of the subject have been developed (for more details, see: Burlachuk L.F. Personality research in clinical psychology.-K .: Vishcha shkola, 1979).

Constructive projective techniques. Decorated details are offered (figures of people and animals, models of their dwellings, etc.), from which you need to create a meaningful whole and explain it.

The Peace Test, for example, consists of 232 object models distributed in varying proportions across 15 categories (houses, trees, planes, people, animals, etc.). The subjects construct a "small world", and based on the many features of it, taken into account by the researchers, conclusions are made about the personality of the "constructor".

Interpretive methods. It is necessary to interpret, interpret any event, situation. The thematic apperception test is a good illustration of this kind of technique. The subject is offered table-pictures, which depict relatively vague situations that allow ambiguous interpretation. In the course of the examination, the subjects compile a short story in which they must indicate what led to the depicted situation, what is happening at the present time, what the characters think, how they feel, how this situation will end. It is assumed that the subject identifies himself with the "hero" of the story, which makes it possible to reveal the inner world of the subject, his feelings, interests and motivations.

cathartic. It is proposed to carry out gaming activities in specially organized conditions. For example, psychodrama, carried out in the form of an impromptu theatrical performance, allows the subject not only to react affectively (play catharsis) - and thereby achieve a therapeutic effect - but also gives the researcher the opportunity to detect conflicts, problems, and other personally saturated products that are brought outside.

Refractive. The researcher seeks to diagnose personal characteristics, hidden motives by those involuntary changes that are made to generally accepted means of communication, for example, speech, handwriting.

Expressive. Implementation by the subjects of visual activity, drawing for free or given topic, for example, the "House-tree-man" technique. It is proposed to draw a house, a tree and a person. According to the drawing, conclusions are drawn about the affective sphere of the personality, the level of psychosexual development and other features.

Impressive. These projective techniques are based on the study of the results of choosing stimuli from a number of proposed ones. The subject chooses the most desirable, preferred stimuli. For example, the Luscher test, consisting of 8 colored squares (incomplete set). All squares are presented with a request to choose the most pleasant one. The procedure is repeated, and as a result, a row is formed in which the colors are arranged according to their attractiveness. Psychological interpretation comes from the symbolic meaning of color. Virtually any objects of animate and inanimate nature can act as incentives.

Additive. In these projective techniques, the subject is required to complete a sentence, story, or story that begins. For example, a series of unfinished sentences is offered such as: “The future seems to me ...”, “I think that a real friend ...”, etc. These techniques are designed to diagnose a variety of personality variables - from the motives of certain actions to the attitude towards sexual education of young people.

Concluding this section, it must also be said that the use of the concept of projection to refer to the methods discussed by some well-known psychologists raises objections.

For example, R. Cattell prefers to call them "misperception tests". L. Bellak writes about "apperceptive distortion". However, attempts to replace the name of this group of techniques were unsuccessful, and most researchers accept their historical designation as projective.

I. What are projective techniques

“The projective method is one of the methods for studying personality. Based on the identification of projections in the experimental data with subsequent interpretation. The projective method is characterized by the creation of an experimental situation that allows for a plurality of possible interpretations when perceived by the subjects. Behind each such interpretation, a unique system of personal meanings and features of the subject's cognitive style emerges. (Psychological Dictionary, 1990).

The main difference between the qualitative research methodology is the ability to reveal the subjective causes of human behavior. Often these reasons are unconscious, and it is rather difficult to understand them. In this situation, the projective method and its constituent projective methods come to the aid of the researcher.

Projective techniques are widely used in market research, as it is important for manufacturers and advertising agencies to answer the following questions:

• Why do consumers like or dislike certain products?
• Why are they used to buying them at this point of sale?
• What influences their decision to choose a particular product?
• What is the image of the brand in the eyes of consumers?
• What points in advertising could influence the desire of consumers to buy a product?
• What heroes / characters can be used in advertising? etc.

At first glance, answers to these questions can be obtained by asking consumers "on the forehead", but in this case there is a high probability of receiving false information. Often the real state of things is not realized by a person, as it is hidden from his consciousness with the help of psychological protection.

“Psychological defense is a special regulatory system for stabilizing the personality, aimed at eliminating or minimizing the feeling of anxiety associated with the awareness of the conflict. The function of psychological defense is the "protection" of the sphere of consciousness from negative experiences that traumatize the personality. (Psychological Dictionary, 1990).

• Projective techniques allow you to “deceive” a person’s consciousness and bypass psychological protection. That is, in this way, we can find out the real attitude of consumers to the subject under study. Our research experience suggests that most often psychological protection works in the following situations:
• Russian consumers are often embarrassed to speak negatively about the researched product, as they subconsciously do not want to offend the moderator. Respondents perceive the moderator as the person who invited them to visit, and cultural traditions do not allow them to speak ill of something that belongs to the owner of the house they came to.
• Often, the financial inability to purchase a product or service is the reason for the negative attitude of consumers towards this product or service. Therefore, when discussing with direct questions, the moderator will not be able to obtain information about the real attitude of consumers.
• Discussion of intimate problems related to health, sexual life, etc.
• In some cases, respondents cannot verbalize the motives of their own behavior, as they are not aware of them.
• Sometimes a negative attitude towards the country of origin of the product under study makes it difficult to clarify the peculiarities of the perception of the product itself.
• When discussing “hot” topics, that is, those that imply the presence of different points of view and are perceived emotionally (for example, politics), respondents who are not inclined to argue and defend their point of view will most likely subconsciously strive to agree with the majority.

A significant advantage of projective methods is that they are effective in studies with children. The younger the children, the less likely they are to be able to answer direct questions. Here projective methods come to the aid of the moderator, which, in the usual way for children, game form allow you to find out the necessary points.

Due to the fact that projective methods require the respondents to exert their imagination and creativity, they are good to use in the warm-up part of brainstorming, creative groups, etc.

Another important positive aspect of using projective methods is their entertainment: the originality and unexpectedness of stimuli or tasks introduces an element of a game into a group discussion or interview, in which respondents are happy to join. In addition, judging by the statements of clients watching the discussion from behind the mirror, the use of some projective techniques partly turns the study into a very interesting and vivid performance.

II. Examples of projective techniques

There are various classifications of projective techniques. We will adhere to the classification accepted in marketing practice (however, I would like to note right away that these classifications are very conditional). According to this classification, projective methods are divided into five groups:
1. Associative (Association)
2. To complete the task (Completion)
3. Designing (Construction)
4. Expressive
5. Ranking (Choice-ordering)

1. Associative techniques. The procedure consists in the fact that the respondents are asked to say, write or choose from the proposed methods what they associate with the subject under study. There are various options for associative methods:
- word associations
– Personification,
– Pictures and words, (associations to visual stimuli), etc.

Word associations- both oral and written, can be used when testing names, identifying the attitude of respondents to a particular brand, product group, advertising, etc.

Personification- verbal or non-verbal (using portraits) is used to determine the type of regular consumer of the brand under study (when selecting actors for advertising), as well as to determine the features of the image of the brand or product that has developed in the eyes of consumers.

Pictures and words- a technique using visual and / or verbal stimuli, used both in testing the name and to determine the image of the brand, product or product category. Respondents are asked to choose those pictures and words that they associate with the subject under study.

2. Techniques for completing the task are that respondents are asked to complete incomplete stimuli, for example, incomplete sentences, drawings, etc. Examples of methods for completing a task are:
– Unfinished sentences
– Unfinished drawings
– Brand mapping, etc.

Unfinished sentences- a very popular technique used in a wide variety of studies. It may have some interpretations, for example, the respondent is invited to complete the sentence himself or choose from several proposed options.

unfinished drawings also has various modifications. For example, in order to find out the respondents' ideas about the portrait of the consumer of the researched product, they are asked to draw certain details on the portrait of a person. In order to find out if the children-respondents liked or disliked the researched product, they are asked to complete the facial expression of a little man, etc.

Brand mapping is a commonly used technique that is used to ascertain the advantages and disadvantages of a brand compared to its competitors, as well as to understand the perceived positioning of a brand. In addition, this technique helps to find a place in the market that a new brand can take. When using this technique, respondents are asked to group brands according to some attribute or place them on a coordinate system.

3. Design techniques force respondents to create (verbally or non-verbally) something. It can be a collage on a certain topic or some situation.

Among the methods belonging to this group:
– Modified TAT (Thematic Apperception Test, created by psychologist Murray)
– Bubbles (Bubble drawing)
– Collage
– Projective questions, etc.

Modified TAT It is used to study the underlying motives of consumer behavior in a given situation, as well as to study the image of a brand or product that has developed in the eyes of the consumer. Respondents are shown pictures of a situation (for example, a shopping situation) and are asked to describe what the characters in the picture think and feel, as well as what happened to them before and after the situation depicted in the picture.

Bubbles (Bubble drawing) differs from the modified TAT in that the respondents are not asked to talk about the events that preceded and followed the depicted situation, but pursues the same goals.

Collage helps to find out the peculiarities of consumer perception of the brand, product or company under study, and can also be useful in the selection of visual symbols when creating advertising.

Projective questions help respondents explain their behavior in a veiled way. The question begins with a statement supposedly made by other respondents. Respondents are then asked to explain (in writing or orally) the reasons that led the false respondent to express such a point of view, and to express their point of view.

4. Expressive techniques rarely used in domestic practice. The focus of this type of method is the emotional perception by consumers of the brand, product, product category, etc. under study. The data obtained using these techniques allows us to understand not only the attitudes of consumers, but also the images that are associated in the minds of consumers with this brand, product or product category. These methodologies are particularly useful in research on products that are largely user-invented (eg, shampoo, perfume, analgesics), as it is difficult for respondents to rationally describe the outcome. Expressive techniques include:
– Psychodrawings
– Role-playing games

Psychodrawings. The procedure of the methodology is that the respondents are asked to draw a well-known brand in such a way as to display the graphic elements that they associate with this brand.

Role-playing games. There are various variations of this technique. We will give an example of the technique "Playing in ...". The purpose of this technique is to find out not only what exactly consumers say about the brand, but also how exactly they say it. When applying the methodology, respondents are asked on behalf of a brand (product, advertisement, etc.) to address consumers in the manner (voice, tone, language) that this brand (product, advertisement, etc.) could use. ). At the same time, they are asked to pay attention to “their” advantages over competitors.

5. Ranking (choice-ordering)- this group includes techniques that have more structured incentives. The technique has many modifications. For example, respondents are given lists of characteristics of the researched product or advertisement and are asked to select those characteristics that most correspond to him / her; or asked to rank the characteristics according to some feature (for example, in order of importance).

III. Features of using projective techniques

All the advantages of projective techniques described above are effective only if they are used correctly. Proper use implies the following points:

• Compliance of methods with the objectives and design of the study
• The right choice of incentives
• Using multiple techniques to solve the same research problems
• Fulfillment of the rules for conducting certain methods
• Professionalism of the moderator

Compliance of methods with the research procedure. In the previous chapter, we tried to show the variety of projective methods and situations of their use. However, in order for these methods to help the researcher obtain the necessary information, they must be carefully selected in accordance with the objectives and design of the study.

The first question that the moderator should ask himself when planning the methodological part of the study is whether it is necessary to use projective methods in this study at all or not, whether they will be needed here, whether their results will be valid. With a positive answer to this question, the moderator selects those methods that will help solve specific research problems. After that, the selection of methods continues in accordance with the type of focus groups or interviews.

Most of the techniques described above can be applied both in focus groups ( various kinds), as well as in peer groups and in-depth interviews. However, projective methods that require a long time (for example, psychodrawings, modified TAT, etc.) are best used in peer groups or in-depth interviews, since a small number of respondents will make it possible to obtain the maximum amount of information from them. Role-playing games, of course, are best used in focus groups with the largest number of respondents.

The right choice of incentives. As mentioned above, projective methods, unlike standardized tests, do not have specific incentives, and most often they are created by each researcher (or group of researchers) independently. The moment of creating or selecting incentives in the use of projective methods is one of the key ones, since the result of the study depends on it. Therefore, the creation or selection of incentives should be handled by a professional. When choosing incentives, you must adhere to the following rules:
- Incentives should be as vague as possible. Stimulus uncertainty can be achieved in two ways: either the stimulus itself must be incomplete or incomprehensible (an incomplete sentence, a blurry picture), or the respondent must be able to choose from a variety of stimuli (pictures, words, sentences, etc.).
– Incentives should not contain many details, should be easy to understand.
– Incentives should not contain social stereotypes and stylizations.

Failure to follow these rules may result in the incentives themselves being the subject of discussion rather than the product under investigation, the brand, the advertisement, etc.

The use of several methods for solving the same research problems. In order to be sure of the validity of data obtained using projective methods, it is recommended to use several methods for solving the same research problem. For example, when studying the brand image that has developed in the eyes of consumers, the following methods can be included in the study: word associations, bubbles, mapping and role-playing games.

When selecting several methods for one study, it is necessary that they are not identical in terms of the type of activity required. For example, in the course of a group discussion or an in-depth interview, respondents come up with associations, play roles, select characteristics from a list, and group them according to certain characteristics. This variety of activities will ensure that the imagination of the participants in the discussion does not get exhausted, they do not get tired and do not get bored during the discussion.

Compliance with the rules of the methodology. Before starting the projective methods, the moderator should once again emphasize that there are no rules when performing the task, so the respondents can feel free and not be afraid to do something wrong.

Before using projective techniques, it is necessary to correctly explain the task. When explaining, the moderator should make sure that all respondents understand the task, and the task itself does not seem too difficult for them. In some cases, it is worth giving examples (show psychographics of other participants in the discussion). However, this must be done in such a way that the participants in the study do not have a stereotype of the answer (so as not to end up with the same drawings of all respondents).

At the same time, it is still necessary to limit the time allotted for the task. At the end of the allotted time, it is important not to interrupt the respondents, but to politely ask the respondents to finish their work.

When conducting projective methods, it is important that no one and nothing distract the respondents from the main lesson.

The most important rule, without which the use of projective methods as such does not make sense, is the need for each respondent to explain his actions. Without this, the researcher will not be able to adequately interpret the data obtained using projective techniques.

The professionalism of the moderator. The quality of projective techniques and the quality of data interpretation depend on this moment. When conducting research using projective methods, it is important for the moderator to avoid an authoritarian leadership style, to strive not to become a censor who evaluates respondents' answers. On the contrary, the moderator should lead the discussion in such a way that the study participants feel comfortable, free, and not shy. Only in this case, the researcher can count on the fact that he will receive the really necessary information.

If the respondents misunderstood the task or are simply not capable of creativity due to their personal characteristics, it is important for the moderator not to show his discontent and irritation, but to try to explain the tasks again or replace this technique with another one.

During the discussion, the moderator should be sure to monitor his non-verbal signals, for example, a closed posture or a disgruntled facial expression may be perceived by respondents as a negative assessment of what they have done. Then, in their future activities, they will try to do the “right” thing, which will not allow them to understand their real attitude to the subject under study.

An experienced moderator perceives the conduct of the study not as consistent responses of respondents to planned questions, but as material for further interpretation. Therefore, he must listen very carefully to the explanation of each participant in the discussion of his actions and each time find out how the respondent relates to what he says.

IV. Interpretation of data obtained using projective methods

The analysis and interpretation of data obtained using projective methods is practically the same as the interpretation of qualitative data in general. There is no scoring system here; instead, a database created from the description and explanation of respondents' reactions is interpreted. When compiling this base, all components are taken into account: the subject of statements, drawings, etc., as well as the situation, language, tone, colors, mood, etc.

The most important thing for the researcher is to understand the difference between what the respondent said and what he meant. To do this, the moderator needs to ask respondents to explain their actions or words. That is, asking the "favorite" questions of the moderator: "Why?" and “How do you feel about it?” after the respondent has expressed his or her opinion on an issue.

Without receiving an explanation from the respondents of their personal attitude to what they expressed, drew, played, etc., the moderator may interpret the data of projective methods inadequately. In this case, he will proceed from his own ideas, characteristic of a certain age, social status, professional experience, etc.

A very important factor for interpreting data obtained using projective techniques is the interpreter itself. In world practice, it is believed that a professional with a psychological or sociological education and experience in conducting qualitative research in marketing can adequately interpret the data obtained using projective methods.

V. An example of a study using projective techniques

Below we give an example of the use of projective techniques at the stage of developing an advertising campaign.

Description of the situation. Due to the fact that cellular services have become more widely available, the target audience of users has expanded. Company X, a mobile operator, needed to create an advertising campaign targeted at a new consumer. It was decided to conduct a qualitative study (focus group), which involved both potential and real users cellular communication services.

Purpose of the study. Find out the main motives for using cellular services.

Tasks:
– Determine the group of motives for using cellular services
– Find out the main motive for using
– Analyze the image of the company providing these services
– Determine the entourage and characters that could be involved in a new advertising campaign.

Description of applied projective techniques. It should be noted that the study was not limited to projective methods, but in this article they are the subject of interest.

Bubbles.

Unfinished offers. Respondents should continue with the following sentences:
- It seems to me that in Lately Cellular has become...
My friend wants to buy a cell phone because...
- People who use cellular services ...
When I see a person with a cell phone, I think that he...

Ranking of motives. Respondents are given forms on which motives are depicted and are asked to arrange them in order of importance.

Role-playing game. Two respondents, on behalf of company X, address their customers, telling them about their advantages over competitors.

non-verbal associations. From a large set of photographs on various topics, respondents are asked to choose those that they associate with Company X.

Collage. Respondents make a collage on the topic Company X.

verbal personification. Respondents describe a typical user of cellular services provided by Company X.

non-verbal personification. Participants in the discussion are offered a large number of images of people. They choose those people who, in their opinion, could use the services of Company X.

Irina Gurji, Leading Specialist, Qualitative Research Department, Ultex Marketing Research

L. Frank was the first to develop a classification of projective methods. This classification, despite the abundance of others with changes and additions proposed later, today most fully characterizes the projective technique.

• Constitutive (the subject is offered some kind of amorphous material to which he must give meaning. An example is the Rorschach technique, consisting of 10 tables, which depict symmetrical monochrome and polychrome images). It is believed that in the process of interpreting images, giving them meaning, the subject projects his inner attitudes, aspirations, expectations onto the test material.
• Constructive (decorated details are offered (figures of people, animals, models of their dwellings, etc.) from which you need to create a meaningful whole and explain it). The subjects, usually children and adolescents, create different scenes from their lives, and based on certain features of these scenes and stories about them, conclusions are drawn both about the personality of their creator and about the specifics of their environment.
• Interpretive (the subject is offered tables-pictures that depict uncertain situations about which it is necessary to write a story indicating what led to such a conclusion). It is assumed that the subject identifies himself with the "hero" of the story, which makes it possible to reveal the inner world of the subject, his interests, motives.
• Cathartic (implementation of gaming activities in specially organized conditions). For example, psychodrama. This enables the researcher to discover conflicts, problems, and other emotionally rich information that are brought out to the outside.
• Refractive. Personal characteristics, hidden motives, the researcher seeks to diagnose by those involuntary changes that are made to the generally accepted means of communication, such as speech, handwriting.
• Expressive (implementation by the subjects of visual activity, drawing on a free or given topic, for example, the technique "House - tree - man"). According to the drawing, conclusions are drawn about the affective sphere of the personality, the level of psychosexual development and other features.
• Impressive. These techniques are based on the study of the results of choosing stimuli from a number of proposed ones. For example, the Luscher test: they suggest choosing a square with the most pleasant color. After the repeated procedure, a number of the most attractive colors are determined and interpreted according to the symbolic meanings of the color. Any inanimate objects can act as stimuli.
• Additive (subjects are required to complete a sentence, story or story that has a beginning). These techniques are designed to diagnose a variety of personality variables, from the motives of certain actions to attitudes towards youth sexual education.

It should be noted that several scientists have made repeated attempts to change the designations of the methods under discussion. So, R. Cattell prefers to call them "tests of erroneous perception", L. Blank - "tests of apperceptive distortion". However, most researchers accept their historical designation as projective.

Description of projective techniques

Methodology ink blots G. Rorschach(Rorschach Inkblot Test). This technique is one of the most popular. Developed by the Swiss psychiatrist G. Rorschach, it was first described in 1921. The Rorschach test diagnoses the structural characteristics of the personality: individual characteristics of the affective-need sphere and cognitive activity (cognitive style), intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts and measures to deal with them (defense mechanisms), general orientation of the personality (type of experience), etc.

Although a standardized series of inkblots had been used by psychologists before to study imagination and other mental functions, G. Rorschach was the first to use inkblots for a diagnostic study of personality as a whole. Developing this method, G. Rorschach experimented with a large number of ink spots, which he presented to various groups of mentally ill people. As a result of such clinical studies, those characteristics of responses that could be correlated with various mental illness, gradually combined into a system of indicators. Methods for determining indicators were then perfected with the help of additional testing of mentally retarded and normal people, artists, scientists and others with known psychological characteristics. G. Rorschach proposed the main ways of analyzing and interpreting answers. His technique uses 10 cards, each of which is printed with a double-sided symmetrical spot. Five of the patches are done in grey-black only, two have extra touches of bright red, and the other three are pastel color combinations. Tables are presented sequentially from 1 to 10 in the standard position indicated on the back. The presentation is accompanied by the instruction: "What is it, what might it look like?" In addition to verbatim recording of the subject's responses to each card, the experimenter notes the response time, involuntary remarks, emotional manifestations, and other changes in the subject's behavior during the diagnosing session. After presenting all 10 cards, the experimenter asks the subject according to a certain system about the parts and features of each of the spots for which associations arose. During the survey, the respondent can also clarify or supplement their previous answers.

There are several systems for calculating and interpreting Rorschach indicators. The most common categories included in the indicators include localization, determinants, content, popularity.

Localization indicates the part of the spot with which the subject associates his answer: whether the answers use the whole spot, some common detail, an unusual detail, the white part of the card, or some combination of white and dark areas.

The localization of the answer (a whole spot or detail) indicates a way of approaching the cognition of objects and phenomena of the surrounding reality, the desire to cover the situation in all its complexity, the interdependence of its components, or interest in the particular, specific, concrete. If a person operates with the whole spot, then he is able to perceive the main relationships and is inclined to systematized thinking. If he is fixed on small details, then he is picky and petty, if on rare ones, it means that he is prone to "extraordinary" and is capable of heightened powers of observation. Answers to White background, according to Ror Shah, testify to the presence of an oppositional attitude.

Response determinants are those spot parameters that cause a response. They include shape, color, hue and movement. Rorschach considered the ability to clearly perceive the shape of spots as an indicator of the stability of attention and one of the most important signs of intelligence. A clear "good" form testifies to observation accuracy, realism of thinking; Normally, such responses are 80-90%. The use of shades in the responses indicates a person's sensitivity to the subtle nuances of interpersonal relationships. In combination with form, shades indicate a way to manage the need for affection, dependence, guardianship from other people.

Rorschach considered responses to movement, arising with the assistance of ideas about movements previously seen or experienced by the subject himself, as an indicator of intelligence, a measure of inner life (intra-version) and emotional stability.

The psychological interpretation of kinesthetic indicators is the most difficult and controversial part of working with the Rorschach test. It is believed that this indicator is most intimately connected with the inner world of the individual, although there are different points of view on exactly what trends it reflects. Most researchers regard kinesthesia as a projection of the unconscious deep layers of a person's life, since, unlike color and shape, due to the objective qualities of the spot, movement is, as it were, introduced by the subject himself. Based on this, kinesthesia is often associated with creativity, high intelligence, and a developed imagination. Rorschach considered them in connection with the introversion orientation of the personality, i.e. the ability of a person to “withdraw into himself”, creatively process (sublimate) affective conflicts and thereby achieve internal stability.

Thus, human kinesthesia indicates:

1. introversion;
2. maturity of the "I", expressed in the conscious acceptance of one's own inner world and good control over emotions;
3. creative intelligence (in good shape);
4. affective stability and adaptability;
5. the ability to empathize.

The interpretation of the content varies depending on the indicator system, but some basic categories are used consistently. Chief among them are human figures and their details (or fragments of the human body), animal figures and their details, anatomical structure. Other widely used categories of indicators include inanimate objects, plants, geographic Maps, clouds, blood stains, x-rays, sexual objects, symbols.

The popularity score is often determined based on the relative frequency of different responses among people in general, compared to tables of popular responses.

The interpretation of the Rorschach scores relies on the relative number of responses that fall into different categories, as well as certain ratios and relationships between different categories.
2. Thematic apperceptive test was developed at the Harvard Psychological Clinic by Henry Murray and co-workers in the second half of the 1930s. The correct, qualified application of this complex technique allows you to obtain a holistic, global knowledge about the individual, which provides information about the dominant needs, the degree of their satisfaction, conflicts with the environment, goals and means of achieving them, barriers, the state of the affective sphere, psychological defenses, life position, outlook, self-esteem.

The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) is a set of 31 tables with black and white photographic images on thin white matte cardboard. One of the tables is clean White list. The subject is presented in a certain order with 20 tables from this set (their choice is determined by the gender and age of the subject). His task is to compose plot stories based on the situation depicted on each table.

TAT was presented as a method of studying the imagination, which allows characterizing the personality of the subject due to the fact that the task of interpreting the depicted situations allowed him to fantasize without visible restrictions and contributed to the weakening of psychological defense mechanisms.

G. Lindzi identifies a number of basic assumptions on which the interpretation of TAT is based.

• The primary assumption is that by completing or structuring an unfinished or unstructured situation, the individual manifests in this his aspirations, dispositions and conflicts. The following assumptions are related to the determination of the most diagnostically informative stories or their fragments.
• When writing a story, the narrator usually identifies with one of the actors, and that character's desires, aspirations, and conflicts may reflect the narrator's desires, aspirations, and conflicts. Sometimes the dispositions, aspirations, and conflicts of the narrator are presented in an implicit or symbolic form.
• The stories are of varying importance in diagnosing impulses and conflicts. Some may contain a lot of important diagnostic material, while others may contain very little or none at all.
• Themes that follow directly from the stimulus material are likely to be less significant than themes that are not directly conditioned by the stimulus material.
• Recurring themes are most likely to reflect the narrator's impulses and conflicts.

G. Murray, analyzing the stories of the subject, identified several stages:

1. at the first stage, the hero of each story should be identified;
2. at the second stage, the most important characteristics of the hero are revealed: his aspirations, desires, feelings, character traits, habits. According to G. Murray's terminology, these are manifestations of needs. Need is the main category of personology. Needs analysis is necessary to clarify individuality, since each person has a specific set of needs. G. Murray singled out and described many needs, which he classified on various grounds. The most famous among these classifications, which emphasizes the origin of a need and, consequently, the direction of activity to which it induces, is the following: mental, organismal and social needs. Murray identified and described several basic needs, including dominance, aggression, autonomy, sociality, achievement, self-defense, etc.;
3. at the third stage, after finding the needs of the heroes of the stories, the psychologist must evaluate them in points (from 1 to 5) depending on the intensity, duration and frequency of manifestation, the significance for the development of the plot;
4. the final stage of processing consists in ranking needs in order to highlight the dominant ones, which manifest themselves more strongly and most often throughout the entire diagnosis (that is, in many stories). According to G. Murray's hypothesis, the subject identifies himself with the characters of the stories; therefore, the needs found and their hierarchy characterize his personality.

Projective method

One of the methods of personality research. Based on the identification of projections in the experimental data with their subsequent interpretation. The concept of projection to designate the research method was introduced by L. Frank. It is characterized by the creation of an experimental situation that allows for a plurality of possible interpretations when perceived by the subjects. Behind each interpretation, a unique system of personal meanings and style features of the cognitive subject emerges.

The method is provided by a set of projective methods (also called projective tests), among which there are:

1 ) associative - for example, the Rorschach spot test and the Holtzman test, where the subjects create images based on stimuli - spots; test completion of unfinished sentences);

2 ) interpretive - for example, a thematic apperception test, where it is required to interpret the social situation depicted in the picture;

3 ) expressive - psychodrama, a test of a drawing of a person, a test of a drawing of an animal that does not exist, etc.

The projective method is aimed at studying unconscious or not quite conscious forms of motivation and therefore is almost the only one actually psychological method penetration into a particularly intimate area of ​​the psyche.

In the light of the concept of personal meaning, it can be seen that the effectiveness of these methods is based on the fact of the partiality of the reflection of the mental, in particular, human consciousness. Therefore, when describing ambiguous images or performing loosely defined actions, a person involuntarily expresses himself, “projecting” some of his significant experiences and, thereby, his personal characteristics.

But it should be clarified which particular features of the personality and its inner world are expressed in the situation of the projective experiment and why exactly this situation contributes to the manifestation of these features. Any obstructing circumstances interrupt the action until they are overcome or until the subject refuses to complete the action; at the same time, the action turns out to be incomplete either in its external plan or in the internal one - since the decision has not yet been made whether to overcome the obstacle or abandon the action. According to research, unfinished actions and their accompanying circumstances are involuntarily remembered better than completed ones; in addition, a tendency is formed to complete these actions, and if direct completion is not possible, some replacement actions are performed.

The situation of a projective experiment just offers the conditions for a substituting action: with a conscientious attitude to the performance of the test, the subject involuntarily turns to his experience, and there the interrupted actions and the situations corresponding to them are stored “closest of all”. And a person, even sometimes consciously, tries to complete the interrupted action, which, however, is possible only on a symbolic plane. The “return” to the interrupted action occurs even when it consisted in concealing the meaning, in distorting the meaning of the circumstances according to one’s own interests. With this symbolic completion of the action, the person applies the decisions that are especially inherent in him, which make up his individual style.

This explains the requirements for projective stimuli: the degree of their certainty or uncertainty is determined by their applicability to certain substitutive actions associated with barrier meanings of varying degrees of specificity. Thus, the tables of the apperceptive thematic test correspond to the meanings associated with obstacles, which can be somehow objectified. The tables of the Rorschach spot test correspond to the meanings of obstacles of a generalized, insufficiently objective nature, the nature of which may lie in the most common features the individual style of a person - in the features of the functioning of his consciousness, etc. These features are the least accessible to awareness, because awareness of what you think about is much simpler and more accessible than awareness of how you think.

Other substantiations of the projective method are possible within the framework of other theories and concepts. Such considerations also lead to an understanding of certain fundamental difficulties. So, it is fundamentally difficult to move from the features that are manifested when performing tests to such personality formations as motives, relationships, attitudes, conflicts, defenses, etc. So far, personal meanings and their place in the structure of personality cannot be identified meaningfully.

From the point of view of psychoanalysis, the object of projective methods is a deeply conflicting maladaptive personality. Therefore, the methods used in the system of psychoanalysis have the following distinctive features:

1 ) focus on diagnosing the causes of maladjustment - unconscious treatments, conflicts and ways to resolve them - protective mechanisms;

2 ) interpretation of all behavior as a manifestation of the dynamics of unconscious drives;

3 ) the premise of any projective research - the uncertainty of the test conditions - is interpreted as the removal of the pressure of reality, in the absence of which, as expected, the personality will manifest its inherent forms of behavior.

The method is projective within the framework of the concepts of holistic psychology: the core of the personality seems to consist of the subjective world of desires, opinions, ideas, and other things, and the relationship of the personality and its social environment is the structuring of the “life space” for creating and maintaining the “personal world”. These relations are modeled by a projective experiment, and the projective method acts as a means of understanding the content and structure of the “egg world”. First up is diagnostics. individual characteristics personality and ways of its normal adaptation.

Many psychologists rate the projective method rather low as a psychometric tool, in particular because of the existence of the problem of reliability and validity of projective tests due to the instability of the results and the inconsistency of data interpretations.

One of the attempts to overcome the crisis in the justification of projective methods is the rejection of the concept of projection as an explanatory category. An example of such an approach is the concept of apperceptive distortion.

Dictionary of practical psychologist. - M.: AST, Harvest. S. Yu. Golovin. 1998 .

See what the "projective method" is in other dictionaries:

- (from lat. projectio throwing forward) one of the methods for studying personality. Based on the identification of projections in the experimental data with subsequent interpretation. The concept of projection to designate the research method was introduced by L. Frank. P. m. ... ...

PROJECTIVE METHOD- (from lat. proectio throwing forward ...) one of the methods of personality psychodiagnostics (the study of a person's personal qualities). The most significant feature of P. m. is the use of indefinite, ambiguous (weakly structured) ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary in psychology and pedagogy

PROJECT DRAWING- One of the methods of group psychotherapy. A number of authors do not allocate P. of river. into an independent method, but included in the complex, referred to as "projective art therapy" (involves the use of not only drawing, but also modeling, modeling and ... ... Psychotherapeutic Encyclopedia

Experimental detection of projections and their subsequent interpretation. Projective techniques are used to study personality ... Psychological and pedagogical dictionary of the officer of the educator of the ship unit

PROJECTIVE METHOD- (from lat. projectio throwing forward) one of the methods for studying personality. It is characterized by the creation of an experimental situation that allows for a plurality of possible interpretations when perceived by the subjects ... Forensic pathopsychology (book terms)- a set of methods and techniques for studying the psychological manifestations of personality. Methods differ in form and conditions: 1) experimental and non-experimental; 2) laboratory and clinical; 3) direct and indirect; 4)… … Great Psychological Encyclopedia

Praximetric methods- Praximetric method is a psychological method, which consists in studying the products of the subjects' activity. The products of activity can be diary entries, archival materials, literary texts, etc. Other names ... ... Wikipedia

They have significant opportunities in the study of individual personality; allow, indirectly modeling some life situations and relationships, explore personal formations that act directly or in the form of various attitudes, such ... ... Great Psychological Encyclopedia

projective method(from lat.projectio - throwing forward) is based on identifying the projection with their subsequent interpretation. Projective methods were originally intended to assist clinical psychologists in diagnosing the nature and complexity of a patient's emotional disturbances. The basis for the emergence of projective methods is Freud's position, according to which unconscious processes are important for understanding psychopathology. Accordingly, the goal of a projective personality assessment is to reveal its unconscious conflicts, fears and sources of anxiety. The term projective method was proposed by L. Frank to refer to assessment methods in which subjects are given vague stimuli, the content of which does not imply clear, culturally conditioned responses. The projective method is characterized by the creation of an experimental situation that allows for a plurality of possible interpretations when perceived by the subjects. Behind each such interpretation, a unique system of personal meanings and features of the subject's cognitive style emerges. It is assumed that responses to test stimuli (such as ink spots or blurry pictures) reveal signs of repressed impulses, personality defense mechanisms, and other "internal" aspects of it.

All projective methods differ in a number of important features. 1. They contain vague or unstructured test stimuli. 2. The experimenter does not tell the subject the true purpose of the study and does not say how he will calculate or interpret his answers. 3. The instructions emphasize that there can be no right or wrong answers, and the subject has the right to answer as he pleases. 4. The calculation and interpretation of the responses of the subject are based largely on the subjective judgments of the experimenter, who relies on his clinical experience.

There are many different kinds of projective methods. Lindsay divides them into the following five categories:

1. associative methods, requiring to respond to the stimulus with the first thought or feeling that came to mind (for example, Menninger's Word Association Test, Rorschach's Inkblot Test).

2. constructive methods, requiring the creation or inventing of something. For example, in the Thematic Apperception Test, subjects are presented with a series of pictures depicting simple scenes and asked to make up stories about what happens in these scenes and how the characters feel.

3. Finalizers require the subject to complete the thought, the beginning of which is contained in the stimulus material (for example, "Rosenzweig's Pictorial Frustration Test", "Rotter's Unfinished Sentence Test").

4. Expressive Methods offer the subject to express their feelings through activities such as drawing or psychodrama (for example, “drawing a non-existent animal”, “kinetic drawing of a family”, “Draw a person” by K. Mahover).

5. selection methods, or distribution in order they offer to select or arrange in order of preference a set of stimuli (for example, the Szondi test contains instructions to choose from the proposed images of people those that you liked or did not like).

It should be added that these five categories of projective methods are not mutually exclusive, and many tests use two or more of them.

Projective methods have significant potential in the study of individual personality traits. However, they are underestimated as psychometric tools, since they do not exclude the influence of many situational factors on the responses of the subject: instructions, incentives, the personality of the experimenter, and the temporary states of the subject. There is a problem of reliability and validity of these methods due to the instability of the results and the inconsistency of data interpretation. The development of projective methods is associated with the creation of methods with high psychometric characteristics.

As examples, we give the most famous projective methods: the Rorschach inkblot test and the TAT.

The Rorschach inkblot test was described by the Swiss psychiatrist Hermann Rorschach in 1921. Before him, standardized series of inkblots were used by psychologists to study the imagination. Rorschach was the first to point out the connection between imagination production and personality type. He moved from analyzing the content of responses to the mechanisms of their occurrence. He considered the main thing not what exactly a person sees, but how he sees and what features of spots (color, shape, size) he uses.

The test consists of ten cards. The cards contain an image of symmetrical spots, which Rorschach created by dropping ink on a sheet of paper and folding it in half. Five spots are black and white, five are colored. The test is usually carried out by the same experimenter with one subject in two stages. At the first stage, the subject is asked to relax and spontaneously respond to test stimuli. The experimenter says, "I'm going to show you a set of inkblots and would like to know what you see in each one." The subject picks up each card (in a certain order), examines it and describes what he sees in this spot, what this spot reminds him of and what it looks like. The experimenter writes down everything the subject says about each spot. The verbatim record of the responses, or protocol, is then analyzed. The experimenter also observes the behavior of the subject during the test, paying special attention to what postures the subject adopts and how long it takes him to answer each card.

When the answers to all the cards are received, the subject is again shown the cards in the same order. In this phase of the experiment, called "investigation," the experimenter tries to determine which characteristics of the spot caused the subject's previous responses. If, for example, the subject says that the first card reminds him of a bear, the question may follow: “What exactly in this spot reminds you of a bear?” In the second phase of the procedure, the experimenter is mainly interested in two questions. The first is what part of the area of ​​the map is occupied by what the subject saw on it and indicated in his answer. The second question concerns what features or qualities of the spot led to a particular answer (for example, shape, color, characteristics of people or animals). Both questions are asked in relation to each response of the subject.

Various systems have been proposed for calculating and interpreting the Rorschach test. Each of these is complex and requires both extensive clinical assessment skills and knowledge of personality theories, psychopathology, and developmental psychology. Regardless of which system is used, in fact they all rate the subject's responses based on four factors:

1. Localization refers to how much of the area of ​​the spot is occupied by the figure mentioned in the answer.

2. Determinants represent features of the spot (eg, shape, color, shadows, apparent movement) that were found to be significant in shaping the subject's response. For example, a color determinant is calculated if the subject reports seeing a bloodstain because parts of the bloodstain are colored red.

4. Popularity/originality is based on how typical or atypical the given answer is relative to the existing norms for each Rorschach card separately. This factor is usually quantified in terms of degree, because the number of normative responses available is so large that it is unlikely to get a completely unique response in new studies.

Further analysis is based on the frequency of assigning responses to each of the above categories. You can also calculate the ratio of categories to get additional information about the individual. These are examples of a quantitative approach to testing. but great importance has a qualitative approach to its evaluation.

Rorschach studied the features of the interpretation of spots in several hundred subjects, among whom were both healthy individuals of various age groups, and patients with various mental illnesses. He noticed that certain categories of responses are combined with certain personality traits and that the degree of intelligence of the subjects can be assessed by the nature of the interpretation. He showed how the answers of healthy people differ from the interpretations of the mentally ill, and described the ways in which spots are interpreted, which are characteristic of schizophrenia, congenital and acquired dementia, epilepsy, and manic-depressive psychosis. However, Rorschach was unable to offer a holistic theory explaining the connection between the perception of spots and certain personal characteristics. His interpretations were empirical in nature and often based on the principle of analogy and "common sense".

Another well-known projective method, the thematic apperception test (TAT), is a set of 31 tables with black and white photographic images. One of the tables is a blank sheet of paper. The subject is presented in a certain order with 20 tables from this set (their choice is determined by the gender and age of the subject). His task is to compose plot stories based on the situation depicted on each table.

The TAT analyzes the structural and content indicators of stories. The structural indicator includes the total time of the story, compliance with the instructions, description of the present, past and future time, degree of detail, latent time from the presentation of the picture to the beginning of the story. Content indicators include a theme (for example, professional, social, sexual, fantastic, abstract-philosophical); the hero of the story with whom the subject is identified; the needs that the characters in the story demonstrate; the goals of the hero and other characters; barriers or presses acting on heroes; conflicts and their outcomes; plot origins.

The diagnostic information obtained using this test makes it possible to give a detailed description of the deep tendencies of the individual, including her needs, motives, character traits, typical forms of behavior, internal and external conflicts, and psychological defense mechanisms. Based on the TAT data, one can draw conclusions about the level of intellectual development, about the presence of signs of mental disorders, although it is impossible to make a clinical diagnosis on the basis of the TAT data alone, as well as any other psychological test.