Thematic Apprehension Test

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Table of Contents

General description
Test description
Reference List

General description

Thematic Apprehension Test (TAT) was developed by two psychologists, Henry Murray and Christiana Morgan. The use of this test was first described in 1935; these results were published by Harvard University Press. The application of this test requires the toolkit consisting of 31 pictures. This toolkit can cost approximately $ 92.25. These tests can be administered by various psychological clinics. It should be mentioned that people can take TAT online since there are websites that can offer such services to clients. These results of the assessment are supposed to be sent by mail. Yet, these websites do not provide detailed information about the organizations that maintain these online resources. So, it is difficult to evaluate their competency.

Test description

Test content and the purpose of the test

This test is based on the premise that people’s responses to various ambiguous pictures can be useful for understanding the motives that drive them and the way in which they can perceive the society and relationship between various individuals (Kelly, 2014). Overall, this test is aimed at examining very broad psychological constructs. The respondents are supposed to create a story on the basis of images, which can give rise to various interpretations (Kelly, 2014). In this case, the key variables are certain characteristics of a story, such as its design, orientation, or resolution. In turn, they are associated with such behavior traits as motivation, self-esteem, ability to cope with stress and other behavioral attributes.

This test can be applied for various purposes. In particular, it can be used to evaluate the impacts of various mental and personality disorders on individuals. In particular, one can mention patients struggling with schizophrenia. Additionally, this technique can be applied to determine if a person can meet the requirements or standards which are important for different high-stress jobs (Kelly, 2014).

Test structure

This test can last for approximately two hours if the examiner chooses to use at least 20 images to which a person should respond. This assessment includes such items as personal problem-solving, SCOR scale (social cognition and object relations), and defense mechanisms used a person (Harsen, 2004, p. 456). Each of these items includes several subscales. For instance, the SCOR scale includes such components as an ability to understand the causality of people’s actions or willingness to follow ethical principles (Harsen, 2004, p. 456). These are some of the details that should be taken into account.

Test administration

The participant is asked to respond to an image offered by the psychologist. He/she can have at most 10 minutes in order to describe the key events that could be described in the picture, the feelings of characters, their motives, and the ending of the story (Harsen, 2004). The person who administers this test should be a psychology graduate. People’s responses can be either recorded or written down. It is important to consider such factors as the age of a person and the impact of mental disabilities on his/her responses. As it has been said before, these tests can be administered online since a person can submit his/her stories via the Internet. However, in this case, the participants have more time to construct a story.

Test scoring

Various attributes of a person are scored on the scale from one to five. The scoring involves coding the narratives of the respondents (Dana, 2005). The investigators are supposed to identify certain themes or elements that can throw light on the behavior of a respondent and his/her character traits. However, this procedure is not standardized because responses can differ dramatically.

Reference List

Dana, R. (2005). Multicultural Assessment: Principles, Applications, and Examples. New York, NY: Routledge. Web.

Harsen, M. (2004). Comprehensive Handbook of Psychological Assessment, Personality Assessment. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. Web.

Kelly, F. (2014). The Assessment of Object Relations Phenomena in Adolescents. New York, NY: Routledge. Web.

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