At a school guidance centre in Pune, Meera, a Class 12 student, fills in a printed test. Each item is a short statement about herself, and for each she chooses one of the given alternatives. The counsellor tells her parents that the test grew out of a long list of words describing people, which a statistical method reduced to a basic structure. The results will help Meera explore suitable careers. Later that day, the centre's clinical psychologist meets Rohan, a quiet and withdrawn boy. She hands him a blank sheet, asks him to draw a person, and then studies details such as the size of the head to understand feelings Rohan may not be aware of.
Which of the following is a problem with the kind of technique the clinical psychologist used with Rohan?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Its responses need sophisticated skills to interpret, and the reliability of scoring is doubtful.
Option (1) The person tends to say 'yes' to items irrespective of their content, which lowers reliability. — Incorrect. This is acquiescence, a tendency to agree with items whatever their content. It troubles self-report tests with yes/no items; a free drawing has no items to agree with.
Option (2) The mere presence of the observer may change the person's behaviour and contaminate the results. — Incorrect. This is a limitation of observation, where a stranger watching may change how the person behaves. Rohan's assessment rests on reading his drawing.
Option (3) The person tends to endorse items in a socially desirable manner, which lowers reliability. — Incorrect. Social desirability means answering items in a way others approve of. It arises in direct self-report tests, where the person knows his personality is being judged.
Option (4) Its responses need sophisticated skills to interpret, and the reliability of scoring is doubtful. — Correct. Asking Rohan to draw a person is a projective technique (the Draw-a-Person Test). Experts read hidden feelings from the drawing, so interpretation needs sophisticated skills and specialised training, and the reliability of scoring and validity of interpretations are in doubt.
NCERT (2026-27): “Draw-a-Person Test … |