Okay so we did this projective test that my teacher came up with in psychology class the other day. He told us to draw or find a picture of an object that we think represents us—not an object that we like.
I went with a tree. I thought about how trees are dependable and growing and lively but also vulnerable because they can’t stop a person from cutting them down.
After that, we passed them in and my teacher distributed them randomly and anonymously and we all took somebody else’s picture home and had to see what we could glean about their personality based on the image they chose to represent themselves. We handed them back to their owners today.
The girl who had mine had perfectly described me, although none of what she had said what anything that I had intended it to project about me.
She gathered from my picture that there are two parts of me, the one that “a lot of people know about” so the trunk and leaves of the tree and the one that I “keep hidden” with my “secrets and guilt and regret” and that’s the roots. She said that I was into alternative music. That I quiet and smart and “open to new knowledge, but opinionated” and that I am artistic and “probably like to write stories and poems.”
Guys. That is me. All of it.
I am just amazed by how perfectly she had me described and I have absolutely no idea how she got that from a picture of a tree (she is obviously very good at psychology though, better than I am). I am thoroughly impressed though and I had to share, haha. :p
Today in social psych, we did the projection test called Draw-A-Person.
Basically, a test in which your draw a person, and certain things about the picture are a reflection on your personality. WELL, can I say how fucking accurate my picture was? I’d never even heard of this test, so I know I didn’t have any influence on how I drew. I will not post that picture here because God knows I draw like a child, but I’ll focus on what I drew and what it means.
I drew a woman, though I did not make her look like me at all. I’m sure that right there says something about myself.
My professor started out with the size of your person. Those who draw a small person, one that takes up half the page or less, feel like they are small, and inferior to those around them. Me all the time.
Long arms indicate that you want to do it all, and take on the world around you. Short arms mean that you feel like you can’t do much, like your arms are holding you back. I drew one short and one long, go figure.
Drawing round, “mitten-like” fingers and hands means that you still need support from your family, whether it’s financially, emotionally, or otherwise. It’s an infantile concept, and you still consider yourself stuck in childhood a little bit.
Short legs are in the same category as short arms. Being “small” means you can’t do much, and that others are better than you.
Large eyes mean that you want to see everything around you, to the point of being paranoid and suspicious of everything and everybody. SERIOUSLY, too accurate.
Most women tend to accentuate the hair, and that normally means that appearance is important to you. How you appear to others is crucial. I spent more time on the hair than anything, but I’m sort of torn. My appearance is important, but only to certain people.
If you drew your person with their feet in the middle of the page, you’re unsure about yourself and your life. You’re just kind of floating around, not sure what to do or where to go.
Now, I normally draw my people with their feet turned outward. Today, I happened to try something different and just faced the feet forward. Outward facing feat indicate uncertainty about a decision, or like the floating feet, about your life. You may not be sure about your job, school, relationship, etc.
My drawing was about 90% accurate. I’m amazed, but also not, because I truly believe that almost everything can be brought back to psychology; almost every move we make or thought we think is purely based on psychology. I love this subject so much and it’s because of things like this.
personality assessment
1) PROJECTIVE TESTS
- Rorschach Inkblot Test
- 10 cards with symmetrical inkblot images
- examiner carefully records the subject’s responses, paying close attention to descriptions on animate/inanimate objects and human and animal figures - Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
- subjects are asked to tell a dramatic story about a serious of ambiguous pictures, including what lead up to the event/what’s happening/what the characters are feeling/how the story ends.
- intended to reveal the subject’s unconscious motivation and personality characteristics
Proponents for projective tests argue that they produce a wealth of info that can give important insights into a person’s personality.
Critics argue that the tests are time-consuming, subjective, and expensive.
2) SELF-REPORT INVENTORIES
- contain inventories of multiple choice and true/false questions meant to differentiate people on a particular personality characteristic
- Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
- contains 500 + statements to which subjects respond with “true” “false” or “cannot say”
- questions like “I am often tense at work” and “I wish I could do over some things in the past”
- clinical psychologists and psychiatrists use the MMPI to diagnose psychological disorders
Proponents argue that these tests are standardised, objective, and inexpensive to conduct/score.
Critics argue that people can give false answers to hide their true feelings, and that many people are not good judges of their own behaviour.
