Toward a conceptual understanding of the deviant response in the Comprehensive Rorschach System

We examined the scoring criteria, subtypes, and interpretative nuances of the deviant response (DR) special score of the Comprehensive Rorschach System. To augment the usual understanding of the DR score, we review the concepts of fabulizing and confabulation in Rorschach literature and discuss the traditional meaning of and the confusion surrounding these terms. By equating a subtype of DR, the excessively embellished DR response, with Rapaport's (Rapaport, Gill, & Schafer, 1968) "affect-laden fantasy" type of confabulation response, we set the stage for an examination of the unique clinical diagnostic implications of this special subtype of DR. We conclude by recommending slight modifications to some of the special scores categories (DR in particular) of the Comprehensive System so that these scores can not only be assigned with more internal consistency and precision but also become more useful in identifying a broader range of unusual Rorschach responses.