Rorschach adaptive fantasy images and coping in children under severe environmental stress

We measured the relationship between the capacity of a group of inner-city, homeless children to produce adaptive fantasy images, as assessed by the Rorschach M+ score and their performance on the Fruit Distraction Test of selective attention and Rorschach measures of reality testing (extended F+ percentage) and object relations (Mutuality of Autonomy [MOA] Scale, Urist, 1977). The sample included 46 Black and Hispanic children (24 boys and 22 girls) who ranged in age from 5 to 13 years. Results from multiple regression analyses that also included age, intelligence, and gender as independent variables indicated that the M+ score accounted for the largest portion of the variance in the Fruit Distraction and MOA scores. The M+ score was also significantly positively correlated with the extended F+ percentage. The results suggest that children's capacity to withstand severe environmental stressors is linked to their ability to produce adaptive fantasy images on the Rorschach.