What are PROJECTIVE TECHNIQUES in psychology: characteristics, types and examples

In psychology there are different currents and, therefore, different types of therapy. In this way, there are a multitude of psychological techniques that are used more or less depending on the therapy that is being carried out.

The best known psychological current in psychology is psychoanalysis, founded by the famous Sigmund Freud, which has served as inspiration for the following psychological currents. This therapeutic practice consists of exploring the person's unconscious. It deals with the problems that the person may have from the point of view of experiences that the person may have had. person in childhood, the interpretation of his dreams, the failed acts committed and association techniques free.

Different evaluation techniques are used in this therapy. Among these types of techniques we find projective techniques. Keep reading Psychology-Online in order to be able to see in what are projective techniques, the types, their characteristics and some examples.

Index

1. What are projective techniques in psychology
2. Characteristics of projective tests
3. Types of projective techniques

As we mentioned well, they are a type of techniques used in psychoanalytically oriented psychological therapies. The procedure of these techniques consists of presenting ambiguous stimuli to the person that the person must try to describe. As stimuli are so ambiguous, the description of the person reflects thoughts that he has repressed, as well as feelings.

As its name suggests, projective techniques seek to make the patient project. This means that a patient reflects in another person, object or situation a trait or desire that is his own but that it is difficult for him to admit because it causes him shame, that he is not socially accepted or that it generates guilt.

The need for projective techniques is that they stimulate the person's most emotional thinking and allow the patient to express unconsciously everything that is affecting you inside but is not able to admit. In addition, they allow a simpler mode of expression so they are also very useful in children, who find it difficult to elaborate and express what they feel and think. In this way, it is easier for all types of people to transmit information to their therapist. What are the most used projective techniques?

There are several characteristics that classify a test or technique as projective. We will see the advantages and disadvantages of projective techniques:

• The analyzes to which the results of the projective tests are subjected are qualitative and global.
• They can be oral, written or manipulative.
• Projective techniques defend that no response from the subject is accidental.
• Must be ambiguous. The greater the ambiguity, the better they define the personality of the subject.
• There are not right or wrong answers.
• Projective tests are complementary to each other.
• There is a wide freedom when answering the projective tests and there is no limited time for it.
• The stimuli presented to the subject do not explain the intention of the examiner in order to avoid social desirability on the part of the subject.

However, projective tests are very useful techniques as a complement to another type of test in order to get a more global vision of what the person's problem is.

There are different types of projective techniques that we will see below.

Thematic tests

In this type of projective test, visual material is presented with different degrees of structuring of human content. The subject must tell a story as a result of it.

• An example is the Murray's thematic apperception test in which before presenting a photograph, the person must explain what happened before, after and during the taking of the photograph. This causes the patient to express their own desires, thoughts or fears in an uninhibited way since the barriers that the person may have are not eliminated.

Expressive techniques or graphic tests

In this modality of projective tests, the patient is offered a blank sheet on which he must draw a character or scene that he imagines. No indication is given so it is a completely free drawing. This helps the person to project those wishes or fears that he may have in an unconscious way.

• Examples of these projective techniques are Human figure test or the Family Test.

Constructive tests

The third of the types of projective techniques is that of constructive tests. The subject is provided with concrete construction material. He must use this material to organize it and build something different from it depending on the test.

• An example of this is the Aberastury house test.

Structural tests

This type of projective tests consist of the interpretation of abstract images. This can serve as an orientation when it comes to what pathology a person may have. For example, if a person always interprets images in a similar way, this could be an indication of depression.

• An example of a structural projective test is the Rorschach test.

Associative techniques

Verbal or written instructions are provided and the subject must verbally manifest her associations in front of words, phrases or stories. It helps to understand what kind of relationships a person makes in their day to day.

• One type of associative test is the Sacks Incomplete Sentence Test.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to What are projective techniques in psychology: types, characteristics and examples, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.

• Garcia, P. P. (1981). Projective tests: Theoretical foundations and clinical applications. Journal of psychotherapy and psychosomatics, (3), 2.
• Gomila, M. V. (2006). PROJECTIVE TESTS: Application to clinical diagnosis and treatment (Vol. 2). Editions Universitat Barcelona.
• Hammer, E. F., Bernstein, J., & Brodesky, A. (1997). Graphic projective tests. Buenos Aires: Paidós.