Rorschach Teaching in APA-Approved Clinical Graduate Programs: Ten Years Later

Abstract

A questionnaire on teaching of the Rorschach technique was sent to all APA-approved graduate clinical psychology programs in the United States and Canada. The survey represents a 10-year update of a study conducted in 1974 and reported in 1976. The questionnaire asked for (a) the degree of emphasis placed on the Rorschach in the curriculum; (b) the Rorschach teaching experience of the Rorschach instructor; (c) the instructor's evaluation of the technique as a clinical tool, a teaching aid, and a research instrument, and (d) a list of the instructional material used to teach the Rorschach. Based on a 93% return of questionnaires, the major results show that (a) 88% of the programs place major emphasis on the Rorschach in at least one assessment course (compared to 86% in 1974); (b) in contrast to the results of the 1974 survey, there were no differences between the ratings of highly experienced and moderately experienced instructors; (c) as in 1974, instructors as a group highly rated the Rorschach as a clinical tool and teaching aid, but gave it generally low ratings as a research instrument; and (d) the results clearly indicate that the Exner Comprehensive System is widely used as an instructional method.