Dimensions of Examinees' Response to the Rorschach: An Empirical Synthesis

Abstract

An empirical update of a 1960 review of Rorschach factor analytic studies was done by using 13 previous factor analytic studies which yielded 65 factors derived from a variety of subject populations. The Rorschach scores defining these factors were recoded into a 30-category system. Relationships among factors were assessed by the number of common defining categories. Principal components analysis was used to condense this matrix to the primary dimensions of variation followed by Varimax rotations. A 10-factor solution was considered a sufficient representation of major dimensions. Tentative and similar interpretations of these 10 factors were couched in terms of both Rorschach's and Eysenck's personality theories.