Projective Techniques

Projective techniques are a set of qualitative techniques used to measure attitude. To avoid the problem of social desirability various indirect measures of attitudes have been used. Either people are unaware of what is being measured or they are unable consciously to affect what is being measured. A projective test involves presenting a person with an ambiguous or incomplete stimulus. The stimulus requires interpretation from the person and the person’s attitude is inferred from their interpretation of the ambiguous or incomplete stimulus. This technique is more commonly used in social –psychological studies where individual perception based attitudes are to be studied. Different types of projective techniques are

Rorschach Inkblot test – This is the most popular of the tests. In this an ambiguous figure like an inkblot is given to subjects for interpretation.

Thematic Apperception Test – A person is presented with an ambiguous picture that they have to interpret.

Draw a person task- an individual is instructed to draw a person ,an object or a situation so that cognitive ,interpersonal or psychological functioning can be assessed. The test can be used to evaluate children and adolescents for a variety of purposes.

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