Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Controversy over Wikipedia

Have you seen this article? A Rorschach Cheat Sheet on Wikipedia? - NY Times. Actually, Wikipedia must have added this content within the last year or so, because when our daughter took the test I wanted to see what the ink blots were. The reason that I wanted to look was because I was in the next room and I overheard some of her answers. I was curious to see what she could have been describing. No, I'm not going to divulge what I overheard. It was quite disturbing, given that this exam was given well after she had some stability in her illness.

As far as anyone saying this is wreckless and some people may memorize the test and thus skew the results, I think that's a bit ridiculous. If a person is ill enough that the Rorschach Test is being administered to develop a diagnosis, they may not even have the cognitive ability to recall reading that content. Due to their illness they may not be able to override what their true impressions are of the ink blots. And let's not forget that the person administering the test is also noting the behavior of the individual while being tested. (Hand gesturing, etc.) Also, any responsible psychologist will use a number of diagnostic tests and tools to diagnose an individual. There are a ton of tests. For a list, click here. Tests such as:

Intelligence tests
WISC-IV (Wechsler Intell Scale for Children)
WISC-R (Wechsler Intell Scale for Children - Revised)
WAIS-III (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – III)
WAIS-R (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – Revised)
Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeduca Battery (Achievement)
Neuropsychological tests
Cognistat
Neuropsychological Impairment Scale
Personality tests
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), or the revised MMPI-2, composed of several hundred “yes or no” questions
Rorschach (the “inkblot test”), composed of several cards of inkblots—you simply give a description of the images and feelings you experience in looking at the blots.
The MMPI or MMPI-2 are commonly given at the beginning of any hospitalizations for psychiatric evaluation.

I'm all too familiar with many of the tests listed and will soon become familiar with a few more, as our daughter must undergo more testing for the care grant I am applying for and most tests cannot be re-taken within a certain prescribed amount of time.

P.S. - In case you were wondering, that's a plain old ink splat. (That is unless you see something completely different. Lol!)

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

3 comments:

  1. nice post..... visit my blog thanks..

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  2. nice blog..... keep sharing...

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  3. I hadn't seen that article. I agree. I can hardly believe anyone would "study" the answers before taking the test. The fact is, the copyright protection ran out. Someone else would have published them anyway. It's just that the internet makes it easier to find.

    I thought the ink blot you posted looked like an ink blot :)

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