Assessment Using the Rorschach Inkblot Test

The Rorschach is perhaps the most famous psychological instrument of all time, yet its purpose and utility are often misunderstood. In this introductory guide, authors James Choca and Edward Rossini demonstrate the Rorschach’s value to modern psychology as an essential clinical tool for assessing clients’ thought processes.
 
Choca and Rossini translate their expertise into fundamental strategies for administering, scoring, and interpreting the test, as well as writing reports. They carefully examine the Rorschach’s many variables -- both individually and in combination with one another—offering possible interpretations for various scores. In addition to surveying the two primary Rorschach scoring systems -- the Comprehensive System (CS) and the Rorschach Performance Assessment System (R-PAS)—the authors propose their own innovative system, the Basic Rorschach, which streamlines the assessment process by analyzing only the most clinically meaningful variables. A versatile, four-step framework bolstered by advanced interpretation strategies helps clinicians look beyond a client’s scores to more deeply understand the person behind them. The authors also propose a shorter, four-card Rorschach test that is more accessible in some situations, yet still clinically valid.

James P. Choca, PhD, is a Cuban American with a doctorate in clinical psychology from Loyola University Chicago. He was a member of the faculty of the Psychology Division of the Northwestern University Medical School, and chief of psychology at Lakeside VA Medical Center for over 20 years. After moving to Roosevelt University, he first directed the Clinical PsyD Program and then served as chair of the Department for 12 years. He is a full professor teaching courses in psychopathology and psychological assessment. A diplomate of the American Board of Assessment Psychology, and a fellow of the Society for Personality Assessment, Dr. Choca’s scholarly work has included writings on the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory and the Halstead Category Test. More recently he created the Emotional Assessment System (EAS-5), a measure of disorders in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. His interest in the evaluations of Hispanics recently led to his working in Chile, Argentina, and Spain.

Edward D. Rossini, PhD, is professor of psychology at Roosevelt University in Chicago, Illinois. He has a long-standing interest in lifespan personality assessment and has presented and published on the Rorschach and the Thematic Apperception Test. He graduated from the clinical psychology program at Loyola University Chicago, then a Klopfer-based Rorschach program directed by our Herr Rorschach, the late Dr. Frank J. Kobler.