The validity of projective techniques and their research and clinical contribution

Numerous surveys have alternately demonstrated either a decline or continued vitality of diagnostic assessment and projective techniques in clinical psychology. This paper examines some of the factors which have contributed to the ambivalent attitudes about projective procedures. The first part of the paper considers questions about the limitations and potential contributions of projective techniques in research. The second portion of the paper examines some of the issues which limit the contributions of diagnostic assessment and projective techniques in clinical practice. A proposal is made for conceptualizing diagnostic assessment as a more integral part of the therapeutic process.