Sexual responses

Almost all the blots have some features that can invite sexual interpretations, but it is wise to
limit them. Some interpretation manuals indicate that more than four sexual responses out from
the ten cards will indicate schizophrenia.

Some psychologists believe that sexual feelings and interpretations are unconsciously present all
time (Freud). Therefore it is wise to say something positive about blots, resembling a penis,
vagina or breasts. For example, a red blob can resemble the female genitals, but one does not
want to say wishing not to over-score the sexual responses. In this case, it is better to say that it
resembles butterfly than to say it looks like a crab, as butterfly are a more positive response. A
not positive response to such potentially sexual motives may indicate some problems with the
relationship with the opposite sex.

If the test person has too few sexual responses, it may indicate sexual frustration.

Typical symmetrical inkblot - This is not an original Rorschach card.

Mirror Image responses

All the cards are symmetrical, and it is a temptation for turning them ninety degrees and interpret
them as something that is reflected in water. It is not wise. Exner's Rorschach interpretation
manual perceives mirror responses as manifests of a reflective and pensive personality. Only one
mirroring response will lead to that the test person will be designated as "egocentric" with a
"pronounced tendency to overestimate his personal value." "Drifting Clouds", "bog wife's brew"
and similar responses will be equated with reflections.

Food responses

If the test subject interprets just one of the inkblots as food, then the Exner's interpretation
manual says: "This individual is expected to exhibit more addictive behavior than usually
expected."

Whole responses

If the test person takes an all overview of an image, it will, according to the Exner scoring
system, be interpreted as intellectual potential and leadership qualities. It would, therefore, be
wise to take a general view of the whole image before saying anything. Of course, it is relevant
especially for cards, which contain many elements, such as VIII, IX and X. For example, one
could say that card VIII resemble a coat of arms or a torso for medical education.

Division responses
A breakdown of an image into modules and sub-regions will reflect common sense. For example,
one can subdivide card X into three areas of different colors.

Detail responses

An interest in details will be interpreted as impulsivity.

Outline responses

Left:
The famous painting "The Scream" by the Norwegian painter Edward Munch - it also shows a
scaring detail in the center of the picture.
Right: It can be hard to break away from the face in the middle, but maybe the outline looks like
a rococo fountain.

An interest in the outline of a blot will indicate rational abilities. For example, one could say that
the silhouette of card VI resembles a kind of flatfish that swims over the bottom of the sea.

Interest in outlines reminds about "whole response" approach, as mentioned above. However, a
whole approach also includes elements within the outline and may also describe the whole
situation.

It is best to tear oneself away from possible scary or erotic detail in the blot's center and try to
interpret the silhouette and the whole. An inkblot can, for example, contain a miniature face in
the middle, reminiscent of the Norwegian painting "the scream". It's not good giving response to
such details as a start; it can score on anxiety.

If the response, the person gives, covers the entire ink blobs, it is called a "W-response" (W for
whole). Adult test persons score on average 38% as "W-responses". They are usually in the range
29% - 46%. The opposite is "D-responses", in which the test person may interpret only a part of
the inkblot.

High "W" percentage indicates creativity, while low "W" rate indicates depression.

Movement responses

Seeing movements will be interpreted as expressions of imagination. Therefore it maybe wise to

describe, what we see, as something that walks, runs, dances, flies, swims, falls and so on.
Animals in motion will often indicate a dynamic way of solving problems.

Colour responses
Responses which implies colours will indicate emotions. Note that five of the cards are black and
white, and five contains colours. If, for example, one says that the two persons in card II are
Christmas goblins, because they have red caps, then you have given a colour response.

Shadows responses

Interest in shadows will indicate depression and a feeling of loss of control.

Surface Structure responses

Interest in surface structure indicates a need for emotional connection with others. Many surface
structure responses will indicate a need for care.

Surface structure means if the surface is said to be hard or soft, rough or smooth, and so forth.

Negative and Positive responses

A psychological test downloads a test person's feelings and personality.

Negative responses include those that contain struggle and fighting, weapons, blood, death and
destruction, and threatening and attacking monsters and dangerous animals. If a test person sees
avenging spirits from the past, monsters from the Alien movies, it will be noted as negative
responses, even though it can made probable from the form of the inkblot.

Interpretation of responses of the type "a run over cat", "trampled asunder cockroach" or "a
smeared out corpse of an insect on the windscreen" will definitely also be labeled as negative
resonses and thus indicate repressed aggression, frustration and anger.

Positive responses include those that describe something that is alive and not dead, something
praising life, child faces, flowers, cute animals, female figures, dancing couples and so on.

Too many positive responses can be interpreted as timidity and subservience or the test person
having a martyr complex.

However, the interpretation of such responses can depend on if the test person identifies himself
with the run-over cat, the trampled insect or with their killers.

A woman gave the response: "A poor little beetle was running around and minding its own
business, then came a boot and trampled it flat." This response gives an indication of anxiety and
the feeling of being a victim of events, she can not control.

Inkblot I

The first blot is easy, and you should be able to give an obvious answer quickly. The test person
can probably see a bat, a butterfly, a moth, a mask, a hollowed pumpkin with light in. You could
say that the central part of the blobs forms a female figure. One should avoid saying anything
detrimental about it, such that the female figure has four breasts and no head. It's just a torso, as
Venus from Miletus. Some interpretation manuals prescribe that the response, animal face,
suggests paranoia.

The response "a dead bat" would be a clear negative response.

Some turn it 90 degrees and see a battleship, which plows its way through the water, with its
reflection in the water. It has got a few bullet holes amidships. This may indicate that this person
feels hurt, the person may feel vulnerable, but despite the injury continues she goes on with the
life as she best can.

A warship is ultimately a weapon, a negative response, and therefore this response also indicates
aggression and frustration.

The response battleship may also mean that the person feels threatened and feels anxiety. For
example, a person may say: "I do not like this picture - it looks like a battleship."

The response "battleship" is a movement response, which also contains a mirror image - it
indicates respectively imagination and egocentric self-overestimation.

Some interpret the card as an angel with stretched out wings. The interpretation "angel" always
indicates innocence, goodness and purity. Maybe the person has been associated with morally
unacceptable events but feels herself that she is innocent.

The response "A woman's body with outstretched arms and big breasts" - come to me - maybe an
erotic response. It can also express a yearning for care. It can also be a woman's self-image - as
erotically attractive.

Some see two people who attack a third in the middle. It would then indicate frustration and
aggression or anxiety, depending on with whom the test person identifies himself.

A man gave the response: "A group of miners who drill deep down into the center of the Earth."
This response represents a disregard of reality, because the card does not resemble miners at all
following the psychologist's opinion, and therefore it indicates schizophrenia.

One can possibly see a vagina, where the head should be, but - as mentioned above - it is wise to
be cautious about giving sexual responses.

Inkblot II

It is important to see that this looks like two human figures facing each other, women or goblins.
If you can not see this, it will indicate, that you have problems with your interpersonal
relationships.

If you do not want to say that the red area at the figures' knees resembles a vagina, it is better to
say that it resembles a butterfly, than it resembles a crab. Where the persons' hands meet, one can
possibly see a penis. The area between the characters can be a cave entrance or a jet fighter seen
from above.
A response maybe "two fighting bears - blood everywhere", it will indicate a feeling of
suppressed aggression, a defensive distance to a feeling of anger, an expectation of a personal
confrontation or an expectation of to suffer damage. Perhaps it symbolizes all four objects.

It is almost superfluous to mention that the response "smashed insect on the windshield" will
score on anger and frustration.

Some see a face of a cat or a bear with blood on the face and around the mouth. It would then be
a negative response that scores on anger, anxiety and such.

The response "two clowns" will be interpreted as "Narcissistic mirroring" - "my happiness
depends on your mirror of my happiness". (Contemporary Rorschach interpretation City J. Reid
Meloy). Without knowing, we would argue that "clowns" seems to be a quite innocent and
obvious response, but as said before, it's hard to win against such psychological tests.

A test subject gave the response: "It reminds me of violence." Card II is said to be the one most
likely to produce responses associated with violence.

Inkblot III

This card will indicate the test subject's sexual orientation. Most will see two human figures
facing each other, surrounded by flowers, orchids and a butterfly. Maybe they dance around a
drum, bend over a table, pick something perhaps strawberries or mushrooms. They both seem to
have breasts as well as penis. If the test subject does not say anything about the person's sex, the
psychologist will insist that he makes a bid.

If one sees the characters as men, it will imply heterosexuality, regardless if the test subject is
women or man.

If one sees the characters as women, it will be a homosexual response, as the test person
answering like this is assumed to recognize the characters' hermaphroditic nature.

Another possible response is "two dogs in a circus, balancing something on their heads", which
is a positive response.

A test person saw: "two women, who fought for something they both wanted to have"- a rare
response suggesting that the test person is concerned with rivalizing contention in her life.

A man gave the response: "Two men who beat a woman's head." The two men are acceptable,
but the "woman's head" represents a disregard of reality according to the psychologist's opinion,
as it does not look like a woman's head and the response indicates therefore schizophrenia.

The response "two dancing girls standing on the shoulders of a man, who wears a butterfly" is a
seemingly innocent activity, but it is nonetheless counted as a negative response because the girls
are much smaller than the man, and therefore the scenery is somewhat disabled and crippled.

Inkblot IV

This is the "Father Card." Most people can after a few seconds imagine a giant seen in
perspective from below. It is common to interpret it as a man in a big coat, an animal skin or a
gorilla. It can be a dragon with big feet, who comes running towards the spectator, seen slightly
from above, or a dragon, who sticks his head out of his cave. At the top, you can perhaps see a
vagina.

The test person's response will be interpreted as his relations to his father, managers and other
authorities.

The giant's third leg with a dragon head can recall a huge penis. If a test subject sees his father's
sex so clearly, it will imply a strained relation to the father and to authorities in general; and this
will make him less suited to a career in a large organization, a psychologist will think.

If you see a dragon's head, it must be a friendly dragon, since it is a potentially sexual motive.

The third leg can also be interpreted in a more neutral way as a sort of loin-cloth, which hangs
down in front.

If one interprets the figure as an attacking dragon, bear, monster or gorilla, it will score on anger
or anxiety.

It has also been interpreted as a tree with a somewhat odd appearance, maybe a Christmas tree.

One woman gave the response: "Ducks, who sticks their head out of a bush in opposite directions
"- a protection-seeking imagining representing anger and alienation.

Inkblot V

Rorshach himself believed that this was the easiest picture to interpret. It is a bat, a swallow or a
butterfly. If you see crocodile heads in the tips of the wings, it's a sign of hostility. If you see the
antennas or swallowtail as scissors, it suggests a castration complex.

It is easy to see a bat or a butterfly. But it is also true that this card will generally not cause as
many responses as most others. In the literature are not so many responses on this card.

Therefore, some psychologists have concluded that if a person gives more interpretations of this
picture than on the previous and the following ones, numbers IV and VI, it maybe a sign of
schizophrenia. They apparently believe that this card does not "contain" as many images and
associations as that of the other cards, so if anyone thinks, he can see something else, there must
be a disregard of reality.

Some may see two animals that bang their heads together - which is a motif characterized by
struggle and fighting, and therefore a negative response.

Let us imagine a test person, who looks long at this card, turns it a bit and then says: "It was a
tough one." He will surely score of depression because, firstly he is too long to respond, and
second, this is the easiest card, and it should, therefore, be the easiest to give a quick response.

Inkblot VI

This ink just is widely considered the most obvious sexual motive. It resembles the female
genitals with the labia, clitoris and hair. Above can also be seen a penis including hair. The
sexual interpretation is difficult to get around. If you can not see it, it's a sign that you have
sexual problems.

It may also be two theater masks or faces with long noses and horns that look in opposite
directions. You can flip the image 180 degrees and interpret it as an animal skins hanging on the
wall, the tail hanging downwards. It maybe a seashell adorned with a flower. It maybe a ray that
swimming over the bottom.

You can also rotate it 90 degrees and say that it resembles a ship or an U-boat on the surface of
calm water with its mirror image. Then it will be a mirroring response that indicates egocentric
self-overestimation. A U-boat is also a weapon, and it will symbolize a feeling of anger and
aggression.

A woman gave the response "mountain", if this is in the meaning "difficult to climb", it may
indicate anxiety. The response "island" suggests fear of being isolated or left alone.

The response "run over cat on a highway" or the like will generally indicate suppressed anger,
frustration and aggression.

Some give the response "a jellyfish that eats an insect."

Japanese people often give the response "musical instrument" for this card.
Inkblot VII

This is the "mother image". The picture may look like two women, who are very slim on the
waist - with slightly unusual hairstyles. The test person's response to this picture is supposed to
show, what he really feels for his mother. If he interprets it as two witches, gossip bitches,
fighting women or scheming women, it suggests a bad relationship with his mother.

A male patient interpreted it as two people "who looked at each other, stared at each other - like
they had had an argument and no longer have the energy to say something."- such a statement
indicates clearly some unresolved issues between the patient and his wife.

It is said that some test subjects can see thunderclouds, this will indicate anxiety. Some see the
picture as two feathered Indians who stick their heads together to make plans on something.

If it turned 180 degrees, it can be a boulder stone bridge over a canyon.

The white area between the two girls can be seen as an oil lamp or the like. Some psychologists
believe that only schizophrenics can see this.

A female test subject gave the response: "the female genitals opened, as it was pulled apart."
This response is not particularly positive and represents a sense of injured femininity.

The response: "A little girl, who sees herself in a mirror", is a clear indication of egocentric
narcissism.

Inkblot VIII

It is important that you see the two four-legged animals on each side of the figure. If you can not
see them, it suggests a mental defect.

The gray triangle on top can represent a tree. The blue area in the middle can be a flying dragon.
The bottom orange area looks like a vagina, alternatively butterfly.

The card can be turned 90 degrees and become a panther on a piece of rock, the scenery reflected
in a river. Since it is a reflection response, it will cause the interpretation "egocentric self-over-
estimation."

The response: "Two animals fleeing for their lives to avoid the flames of Hell below" symbolizes
the fear of life-threatening forces that the test-person can not control - perhaps the feeling of guilt
for actions in the past that can not be changed.

If you respond that the entire image looks like a coat of arms, you have shown some sense of
wholeness and indicated good organizational skills. It can also be seen like a plastic torso that
demonstrates the internal human organs, lungs, liver, kidneys etc. with the spine in the middle.
This response will be a "whole" response and indicate good organizational skills and leadership.

Inkblot IX

This can be interpreted as a rocket launching with the flames below, the black smoke higher up
and the slender rocket in the middle. Or it can just imagine a fire with black and yellow smoke. It
can be a many-colored flower.

When you turn it 90 degrees, you can see a face in both the pink areas at the bottom and in the
blue areas.

It is said that paranoid persons will notice the bright green mushroom cloud, which is enclosed
by the yellow in the center area above. It is not wise to imagine fighting men or monsters in the
yellow area above. It will be a sign of social maladjustment.

It is wise to provide fewer interpretations to this picture than to the previous and the following
picture in order to avoid suspicion of schizophrenia.

Inkblot X

The purpose of this inkblot can be to test the person's organizational abilities. One can find blue
crabs or spiders, grey crabs and shrimps, orange fruits, green caterpillars, red sea cucumbers and
brown mice. The test subject is expected to mention all of this.

But he must also be able to see the whole picture. Meaning that the whole picture can resemble
life on the bottom of the ocean or a glance at amoebas through a microscope.

If you see the grey mice or shrimps in the top center as two animals eating a stick, it will indicate
castration anxiety, since the grey stick is assumed to symbolize a penis, even if the test subject
does not say so.

Some test persons see after prolonged response time something that disintegrates, collapses, falls
down or explodes, or they watch a volcano eruption. This may indicate the following:

- 1. The test person may have obsessive thoughts that he is about to be degraded physically or
mentally, or on the verge of degrading.

- 2. The test person is depressed and preoccupied with aging or loss of functions - especially for
older persons.

- 3. Loss of self-control and risk of destructive and inappropriate behavior.