The Thematic

Apperception Test
Stella Miller
University of Calgary
EDPS 616
 Outline
 General Information
 Test Contents
 Test Development
 Technical Aspects
 Theoretical Orientation
 Clinical Applications
 Commentary
 General Information
 Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) is a
projective technique…
 ….involving projection based on ambiguous stimuli
 …premised on projective hypothesis

 Advantages of projective techniques

 Assessing subconscious personality traits, needs and
desires
 It is felt that projective techniques provide insights into
personality that could not be obtained otherwise
 General Information
 Popularity of the TAT
 The test is reportedly widely used and formal training
is recommended by many graduate program directors

 History and Current Availability

 The TAT was developed by Henry Murray, of Harvard
University, with the assistance of Christiana Morgan
 It is currently published by Pearson Assessment and
may be purchased by qualified individuals – a high
level of qualification is required to use the TAT
 Test Contents
 The current version of the TAT (Series D)
consists of 31 picture cards and a manual

 The images on the picture cards are intentionally

ambiguous to facilitate free projection

 The cards may be viewed at the following link:

 http://s927.photobucket.com/user/Rotman/library/The
matic%20Apperception%20Test?sort=6&page=1
 Test Contents
 Murray established detailed test protocols, with
choice of protocol determined by age and sex of
the respondent

 All respondents are asked to provide an

imaginative story based on the picture cards

 Current test protocol has this basic structure but

is more flexible, and variable, than Murray
intended
 Test Contents
 Interpretation of the TAT is usually a
matter of clinical judgment – this was what
Murray intended.

 Thereare several standardized scoring

schemes for the TAT but they do not
appear to be widely used
 Test Development
 Most of the development work on the TAT
occurred within 10 years of its introduction in
1935

 Key influences on the TAT:

 Earlier picture-story tests, e.g. of Binet
 Ideas of Carl Jung
 Thomas Wolfe’s Look Homeward, Angel
• http://kerrisdalegallery.com/print/breton-the-song-of-the-
lark/bj002ph-jules-breton_the-song-of-the-lark/
 Test Development
 Editions of the TAT
 Series A, B, C and D

 Selection and preparation of images for

inclusion in the TAT
 Selection of images from the arts and popular
media
 Careful re-drawing of these images by
Christiana Morgan and others
 Technical Aspects
 There has been widespread criticism of
the scientific basis of the TAT
 Response: efforts to standardize test
administration and interpretation

 Examples of criticisms of the TAT:

 Criticisms of Vane (1981)
 Criticisms of Lilienfeld, Wood and Garb (2000)
 Theoretical Orientation
 The adequacy of the TAT in explaining theoretical
constructs depends on theoretical orientation –
particularly, one’s views on personality, imaginative
expression as an indicator of personality, etc.

 The construct validity of the TAT has been debated

 But even critics acknowledge that the TAT has construct

validity when administered according to a structured
scoring protocol focused on measuring a particular
object or aspect of personality
 Clinical Applications
 The TAT continues to be a popular personality
assessment technique and many clinicians
believe it offers incremental utility (i.e., insights
that cannot be obtained through other
assessment methods)

 The TAT is particularly widely used for

assessment of needs for achievement, power
and affiliation
 Clinical Applications
 The TAT has been widely used in research, and
has been the subject of a number of empirical
studies of its reliability and validity

 There has been little research on the impact of

culture on the validity of the TAT, specifically,
but there are reasons for concern in using the
test with clients from marginalized backgrounds
 Commentary
 Murray believed that TAT offers an “x-ray picture” of the soul of
those who take it

 Modern clinicians have more modest, qualified expectations

 Criticism of the scientific basis of the test has had an impact

 But many clinicians believe that the TAT continues to be useful

 Use of the TAT requires clinicians to be mindful of its technical

limitations and to exercise caution in using the test with clients from
marginalized backgrounds
 References
 Conklin, A., & Westen, D. (2001). Thematic apperception test. In W. I. Dorfman and M.
Hersen, eds., Understanding psychological assessment. New York, NY: Kluwer Academic.
 Cramer, P. (1999). Future directions for the Thematic Apperception Test. Journal of
Personality Assessment, 72(1), 74-92. doi: 10.1207/s15327752jpa7201_5
 Groth-Marnat, G. (2009). Handbook of psychological assessment. Hoboken, NJ: John
Wiley & Sons.
 Jung, C. (1961). Memories, dreams, reflections. New York, NY: Random House.
 Lilienfeld, S. O., Wood, J. M., & Garb, H. N. (2000). The scientific status of projective
techniques. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 1(2), 27-66. doi: 10.1111/1529-
1006.002
 Morgan, W. G. (2002). Origin and history of the earliest Thematic Apperception Test
pictures. Journal of Personality Assessment, 79(3), 422-445. doi:
10.1207/S15327752JPA7903_03
 Vane, J. R. (1981). The Thematic Apperception Test: A review. Clinical Psychology
Review, 1(3), 319-336. doi: 10.1016/0272-7358(81)90009-
 Wolfe, T. (1929). Look homeward, angel: A story of the buried life. New York, NY: Grosset
& Dunlap.