The effect of administration skills on Rorschach protocols

Although the Rorschach is the most widely studied and used non self-report measure to assess personality, no empirical studies have been carried out to investigate what level of expertise is needed to properly collect valid Rorschach protocols. The aim of the current study was to explore, using a within-subject design, the effect of training on proficiency in administering the Rorschach, specifically a) what kind of errors are associated with different levels of training, and b) what level of expertise guarantees a sufficiently effective Rorschach administration. The second (T1), the fifth (T2) and the tenth (T3) Rorschach protocols collected by 50 licensed psychologists attending a Rorschach training course were examined to explore what kind of mistakes were made at the different stages of training. In the Response phase, examiners collected more simplistic protocols and made more errors at T1, while they showed satisfactory proficiency at T2. Regarding the Inquiry Phase, the most relevant finding was that at T1 examiners made both errors of omission and commission, while at T2 they no longer made errors of omission but they did make more errors of commission, likely as a temporary effect of the training. At T3 a sufficiently effective Rorschach administration was carried out. Findings suggest that a 100-h Rorschach training course and 10 administrations as practicum, each followed by individual feedback and group discussion, might be sufficient to guarantee sufficiently effective Rorschach administration skills.