Projective Narratives / Tests

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Projective narratives or projective tests are clinical and forensic evaluations that assess personality, emotional functioning, and potential psychological disorders. The tests use ambiguous stimuli (vague pictures, like inkblots, incomplete stories, or unstructured tasks) to elicit responses revealing our unconscious biases, anxieties, and desires. Projective tests can help with children or individuals unable to answer direct questions (the ambiguity of the stimuli can make the more comfortable). They’re also thought to be less susceptible to faking or social desirability bias than objective tests; however, they’ve been criticized for lacking scientific validity and reliability—and for being subjective in their interpretation. Examples of projective tests:

• Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) showing ambiguous scenes and asking person to create stories about them, revealing personal feelings, fears, attitudes. 
• Rorschach Inkblot Test and examiner assesses person’s interpretation, which reveals aspects of personality and emotional functioning. 
• Draw-A-Person Test and examiner assesses the image. 
• House-Tree-Person Test and examiner assesses person’s drawings of house, tree, and person.