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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

1. SACKS SENTENCE COMPLETION TEST REPORT

1.1. Introduction to the test

Joseph M. Sacks and other psychologists from the New York Veterans Administration

Mental Hygiene Service created a sentence completion test to gather important clinical data in four

sample areas of adjustment (Abt & Bellak, 1950). The Sacks Sentence Completion Test, is a 60-

item test which asks the respondents to respond to 60 incomplete sentences referred

(Watson,1978). The four domains of that test are self-concept, sex, family, and interpersonal

connections. It is believed that the items in these sections give the individual enough possibilities

to communicate his attitudes for a clinical psychologist to deduce his main psychological

tendencies. Such information aids in the selection of therapy candidates and provides the therapist

with important hints about the nature and dynamics of the patient's attitudes and emotions (Abt &

Bellak, 1950).

1.1.1. Family area

Three types of attitudes are present in the family area: those toward the mother, the father,

and the family unit. Four sentence completion prompts are used to symbolize each of them,

encouraging the subject to convey his feelings both for his parents as individuals and for his family

as a whole. "My mother and I..." Items like "My family treats me like..." and "If my father would

only..." are examples of those meant to evoke these views. It is hoped that, despite his propensity

for caution and evasion, the subject will divulge important information in response to at least one

of the four questions (Abt & Bellak, 1950).

1.1.2. Sex area

Attitudes regarding women and heterosexual relationships are included under the sex

category. The eight topics in this section give the subject the opportunity to discuss women as
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social beings, marriage, and sexual interactions in general. Items like "I think most girls..." and "If

I had sex relations..." are common in this category (Abt & Bellak, 1950).

1.1.3. The area of Interpersonal relationships

Attitudes toward close friends and acquaintances, coworkers at work or school, superiors

at work or school, and those being supervised are all included in the category of interpersonal

relationships. The 16 kerns Give the individual a chance to express his feelings toward people

outside the home and his perception of how others feel about him in this area. "My friends, when

I'm not around. " "When I see the boss coming..." The phrases in this category include "The people

who work for me..." and "At work I get along best with..." (Abt & Bellak, 1950).

1.1.4. Self concept area

Fears, guilt feelings, objectives, and attitudes regarding one's own skills, past, and future

are all part of one's self-concept. The attitudes indicated here help the psychologist get a sense of

how the subject views himself in terms of who he is, who he was, who he wishes to be, and who

he believes he will be in the future. "I wish I could lose the fear of...," "My greatest mistake was...,"

"I believe I have the ability to..," "When I was a child...," "Some day I..," and "What I want most

out of life..." are a few of the twenty-four topics in this section (Abt & Bellak, 1950).

1.2. Other Sentence completion tests and their uses

Ebbinghaus measured intelligence, which he described as the capacity to mix or integrate,

using incomplete sentences in 1897.

Tendler, who made a distinction between the diagnostic of cognitive reactions and that of

emotional reactivity, was one of the pioneering practitioners of the Sentence Completion method

in the field of personality. He suggested the use of tools that will (a) immediately trigger emotional
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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

reaction, (b) allow for free response, and (c) eliminate discrimination or choice (as in personality

inventories) as requirements for examinations in the field of emotional conduct (Tendler,1930).

Regarding the issue of the usefulness of SCT answers as indicators of personality traits,

Lorge and Thorndike invested a lot of time and effort in statistical tabulation. Each author created

a list of characteristics, passions, and attitudes and then rated the responses according to how well

they fit each (Tendler,1941).

In response, Rohde suggested using the SCT as a tool for clinical psychologists and other

professionals who work with young people and need to get to know their needs, inner conflicts,

fantasies, sentiments, attitudes, aspirations, and adjustment challenges (Rohde,1946).

Stein discussed a sentence completion exam that was initially created to help with the

hiring of Office of Strategic Services personnel during the conflict. Items were chosen to provide

pertinent information about at least one of the 10 factors that are thought to be significant for

assessing a person's personality: family, past, drives, inner states, goals, cathexes, energy, temporal

perspective, reaction to others, and reaction of others to the issue (Stein, 1947).

In Army Air Force convalescent hospitals, the Rotter and Willerman Incomplete Sentence

Test (IST) was employed as a screening tool. Three categories of replies were scored: conflict-

related or unhealthy responses, constructive or healthy responses, and neutral responses (Rotter

& Willerman, 1947).

1.3. Theories behind the test

1.3.1. Theory of projective personality

Projective tests are used to evaluate a person's unconscious thoughts, feelings, and

motivations in the field of projective psychology. Projective tests are a sort of psychological

evaluation in which subjects are given ambiguous stimuli and asked to provide whatever response
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comes to mind. These responses are then scrutinized in order to learn more about the person's

underlying personality traits, feelings, and conflicts (Rorschach, 1921).

1.3.2. Psychodynamic theory

The psychodynamic hypothesis, often known as psychoanalytic theory, holds that

childhood events play a significant role in determining an adult's personality. It describes

personality in terms of unconscious psychological processes (such as wishes and fears of which

we are not completely aware) (Bornstein, n.d). Its main objective is to help psychologists in

understanding patients' emotional difficulties (Tendler, 1930).

1.4. Recent researches based on the test

1.4.1. John et al., 2023

This study was titled as “Types of Conflict and Motivational needs of young adults with

and without Substance Use Disorders”. This study focuses on finding out the types of conflicts

and motivational needs in young adults with and without substamce use. They used SACKS

Sentence Completion test to find out the underlying conflicts of the participants, the number of

conflicts in various domains and the type of conflicts. They found that individuals with SUD’s

have high power conflicts.

1.4.2. Sengupta et al., 2023

The study was titled as “Variations in Post-hypnotic Suggestion for managing Dissociative

Conversion Disorder using Projective Tests - A Case Study”. This study looked at how different

post-hypnotic suggestions affected a woman's management of dissociative conversion disorder.

They had used Thematic Apperception test and Sentence Completion test for assessing the nature

of conflicts before and after hypnotic intervention.

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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

1.5. Construction of the test

The complete test consists of sixty items, of which four represent each of the fifteen

attitudes enumerated above. The test was constructed in the following manner: Twenty clinical

psychologists were asked to submit three sentence completion items, purporting to elicit significant

attitudes in each of these categories. To these were added items culled from the literature on

sentence completions. In this way 280 items were obtained. They ranged in number from fourteen

to twenty-eight items per category. For example, nineteen items were listed for attitude toward

mother, twenty-two items for attitude toward father, and so on. The twenty psychologists were

then requested to select in each category the four items they considered best suited to elicit

significant attitudes in that category. The items chosen most frequently became the final test items

(Abt & Bellak, 1950).

1.6. Psychometric properties of the test

Three psychologists rated the degree of disturbance of one hundred subjects in each of the

fifteen categories on the basis of the subjects' sentence completion responses. The psychiatrists

who treated these subjects made independent ratings of their degree of disturbance in each of the

fifteen categories, based on their clinical impressions of the subjects. When the ratings of the

psychologists were correlated with those of the psychiatrists, contingency coefficients of .48 to .57

were found, with standard errors of .02 and .03. For fifty subjects psychologists wrote

interpretative summaries of the fifteen attitudes, based upon the subjects' responses to the four

items included under each attitude. These interpretative summaries were submitted to the

psychiatrists, who rated them with respect to their agreement with clinical findings. Some 77 per

cent of the statements were rated in close agreement or partial agreement with clinical findings

(Abt & Bellak, 1950).

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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

1.7. Administration of the test

The test is done in a well-lit room and the client is seated comfortably. In front of them,

the interviewer should put Sacks form, a pencil and an eraser. A good rapport is established

between the therapist and the client (SSCT Sentence Completion Test, n.d). SSCT can be done

individually or in groups and takes 20 to 40 minutes. Subjects are encouraged to read the following

guidelines and ask any questions they may have about them (Abt & Bellak, 1950).

1.7.1. Instructions pertaining to the test (Abt & Bellak, 1950)

"Here are sixty partially completed sentences. Read each sentence and complete it by

writing the first thing that comes to mind. Do it as fast as you can. If you can't complete an item,

circle the item and return to that section later." 1.7.2.

1.7.2. Subjects frequently ask (Abt & Bellak, 1950)

“Should I take the time to think about a reasonable answer?” It is emphasized that

responses should include the first spontaneous response to each stimulus and that the subject

should not pause to think of a logical end.

“Do I have to write only one word?” He/she is told that a word or group of words is

acceptable and that the spontaneous thought of the subject is desired.

Subjects sometimes ask the examiner to see their answers and let them know if everything

is okay. They should be assured that it is a correct response if it represents a spontaneous response

to the stimulus item.

Sometimes an examiner is asked to give the meaning of words at the beginning of a

sentence. For example, it is permissible to say that "rarely" (at point ) means "almost never". But

if the subject asks the examiner to explain the meaning of the entire item, he should be asked to

respond in terms of what the item means to him.

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1.7.3. Other conductive measures (Abt & Bellak, 1950)

● When the subject is ready to respond to the first item, the start time will be indicated in the

upper right corner of the page. When he returns the paper, an end time must be specified.

● If possible, an investigation should be conducted. The examiner chooses answers that seem

important or confusing and asks the subject to "tell me a little bit more about it".

● The examiner should not encourage oral answers because this may affect the answer

given because the person may give a favorable answer because they have more time to

think about their answers (SSCT Sentence Completion Test, n.d).

● Although the standard method of administration requires the subject to read the stimulus

and respond to it in writing, in some anxious patients the use of oral items and the

recording of their oral responses patient is very effective.

1.8. Scoring and Interpretation (Abt & Bellak, 1950)

An assessment sheet was developed for SSCT, bringing together, under each attitude, the

four stimuli and the subject's response to them. The four responses were reviewed together and

an interpretive summary was performed to crystallize the clinician's impression of the subject's

attitude in the field. Then, rate the subject's disturbance in this area, on the following scale:

Scoring and Interpretation criterias of SSC

Score Meaning Interpretation

2 Severely disturbed There seems to be a need for therapeutic help to

manage emotional conflicts in this area.

1 Mildly disturbed There are emotional conflicts in this area, but it

seems to be possible to control them without

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therapeutic help.

0 Not disturbed No significant disturbance noted in this area.

In addition to the scoring criteria, the validity of the assessment depends on the clinical

history and in-depth understanding of the examiner as well as the material produced by the

subject. After the summary and individual attitude ratings, an overview is presented to

summarize the overall SSCT results. This includes the following:

1. A statement about the areas in which the subject expressed the most anxious attitude. This can

provide important clues to the therapist.

2. A description of the interrelationships between attitudes towards content. This often highlights

the dynamic elements of a case.

1.9. Advantages and limitations of the test

Compared with contemporary objective tests, the SCT has the distinct advantage that it

provides the necessary freedom for respondents to respond subjectively rather than forcing the

dichotomy of yes, no, ?. Second, there is ambiguity about the nature of the test because there are

less obvious about the right or wrong answer and this has less to do with the risk of manipulating

the answers provided by respondents. But there is a chance that the client can also be manipulated

in the test (SSCT Sentence Completion Test, n.d). Advantage of Sentence Completion test over

Word Association test is it is better able to suggest contexts, feeling tones, qualities of attitude,

and specific objects or areas of attention; it allows for more individual freedom and variability of

response; and it taps a larger area of the subject's behavioral world. These factors reduce the

number of associations evoked by a single word (Shor, 1946). In addition to reiterating the a

forementioned objections of the word-association method, Shor added that lists of stimulus words
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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

are not organized according to their range of content or their order but rather in a random, arbitrary

way. The stimuli are set in a certain order in Shor's Self-Idea-Completion Test (SIC) to allow for

a carry-over or generalization of attitude from immediate to fundamental human interest (Shor,

1946).

Psychodiagnostic Report

1.10. Proforma of the client

Initial P. B

Age 22

Education M.Sc NeuroPsychology (pursuing)

Socioeconomic status Middle class

Occupation Student

Languages spoken Hindi, English

Location Bangalore, Karnataka, India

Test Administered Sacks Sentence Completion test

1.11. Test results and interpretation

Client’s scores and Interpretation in each domains

S.No Domain Overall Interpretation

Score for
the
domain
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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

1 Attitude towards 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

Mother

2 Attitude towards 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

Father

3 Attitude towards 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

family unit

4 Attitude toward 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

women

5 Attitude toward 1 There are emotional conflicts in this area,

Heterosexual but it seems to be possible to control them

relationships without therapeutic help.

6 Attitude toward 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

Friends and

Acquaintances

7 Attitude toward 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

superiors at work

or school

8 Attitude toward 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

people supervised
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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

9 Attitude toward 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

colleagues at work

or school

10 Fears 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

11 Guilt feelings 1 There are emotional conflicts in this area,

but it seems to be possible to control them

without therapeutic help.

12 Attitude toward 1 There are emotional conflicts in this area,

own abilities but it seems to be possible to control them

without therapeutic help.

13 Attitude toward 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

past

14 Attitude toward 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

future

15 Goals 0 No significant disturbance noted in this area.

1.12. Discussion about client’s responses in each domains

1. Attitude towards Mother

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

disturbance in this domain. The client's responses in this domain were realistic and reliable to her

and the test.

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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

2. Attitude towards Father

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

disturbance in this domain. But it seems like that the client misses her father as she is living far

from her family for the purpose of her education. It has been not mentioned as a conflict since it

has become a part of life in everyone’s life.

3. Attitude towards family unit

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

conflict in this domain. However, she mentioned that most of the families she know are diplomatic.

This might mean that families are very skillful nowadays in handling situations tactfully compared

to older generations and she is aware of that.

4. Attitude toward women

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

conflict in this domain. However, she perceives that most of the women lack self-worth and self-

like and some women are playing women card by taking advantage of their gender. This had not

been taken as a significant disturbance since this seems like something she had observed in her

life.

5. Attitude toward Heterosexual relationships

The client has scored 1 mark in this domain and this indicates that there is a significant

conflict, but it can be managed without any therapeutic help. She had made her statements like If

she had sex relations, it will be only with her loved ones and her sex life is the best. This might be

a conflict between her Id being acted on her sexual feelings and Ego, being controlling the mind

rather than acting on impulses. Since, humans have the powerful drive of Sex and Id wants to seek

pleasure out of sex if opportunities arise. But her statements were like hiding her sexual desires.
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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

Since it can be generalized to all humans to hide their sexual feelings, this doesn’t need any

therapeutic intervention.

6. Attitude toward Friends and Acquaintances

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

conflict in this domain. However she has mentioned that eventhough she is not around, her friends

still chill. It might mean that she is little disappointed that her friends still chill without her and

also she can understand the fact that humans around us will not be permanent in our lives.

7. Attitude toward superiors at work or school

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant conflict in this

domain. But she mentioned that she feels anxious when her teachers come inside the class. This

might reflect her little fear of superiors that generally humans have.

8. Attitude toward people supervised

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

conflict in this domain.

9. Attitude toward colleagues at work or school

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant conflict in this

domain.

10. Fears

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

conflict in this domain. However, the client had mentioned that she is scared of snakes but it cannot

be considered as a significant conflict since humans are evolutionarily preprogrammed to get

scared of snakes.

11. Guilt feelings

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Sacks Sentence Completion Test Report

The client has scored 1 mark in this domain and this indicates that there is a significant conflict

but it can be managed without any therapeutic help. The client has mentioned that at some

circumstances she had not put her self-respect first and gave some persons benefit of doubt. This

can be interpreted as a conflict between her Ego, putting her self respect first and Superego, being

giving importance to others than self. Since, it was a developmental aspect in humans life , it can

be managed without any therapeutic intervention. Thoughts and actions change with experiences.

12. Attitude toward own abilities.

The client has scored 1 mark in this domain and this indicates that there is a significant

conflict but it can be managed without therapeutic help. The client has mentioned that her greatest

weakness is she cannot say no easily to things. This might be interpreted as a conflict of her ego

saying no to some events with her superego , being not able to upset others by saying no and her

Id, being compliance with others by saying yes easily.

13. Attitude toward past.

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

disturbance in this domain. But she mentioned that she would learn Bharathanatyam , Guitar if she

is a child again. This indicates common desires that every humans have that they had missed out

in their childhood. Hence, this cannot be considered as a significant conflict.

14. Attitude toward future

The client has scored 0 in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant

disturbance in this domain. She is very much confident about her future and looking forward to

opportunities to meet achieve her goals.

15. Goals

The client has scored 0 mark in this domain and this indicates that there is no significant
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conflict in this domain.

1.12. Impression

The client has significant emotional disturbance in area od heterosexual relationships and

self-concept but can be managed without any therapeutic intervention.

1.13. Summary of the test findings

Out of the four main significant areas of the test, the client has no disturbances in her family

area and her interpersonal relationship area. She might have some emotional disturbances in her

Sex area specifically in attitudes towards heterosexual relationships and her self-concept area

specifically in guilt feelings and in attitudes towards her own abilities. Overall, her emotional

disturbances seems to be as a result of her conflicts between her Id, Ego and Superego. As she is

an early adult, as a part of emotional development, it can be managed by her learning and upcoming

life experiences. She doesn’t need any therapeutic intervention in any aspects.

1.14. Recommendations

Nil
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References

Abt, L. E., & Bellak, L. (1950). Projective psychology: Clinical approaches to the total

personality. Alfred A. Knopf.

Bornstein, R. (n.d.). The psychodynamic perspective. Noba. Retrieved from

https://nobaproject.com/modules/the-psychodynamic

perspective#:~:text=Psychodynamic%20theory%20(sometimes%20called%20psychoanalytic,cru

cial%20in%20shaping%20adult%20personality.

John, S. Y., Upadhyay, M. P., Chaudhary, R., & Mishra, B. P. (2023). Types of Conflict

and Motivational Needs of Young Adults with and without Substance Use Disorder: A

Comparative Study. International Journal of Indian Psychology, 11(1).

Rorschach, H. (1921). Psychodiagnostics: Method and Results of a Perception Diagnostic

Experiment. Ernst Bircher.

Rohde, A. (1946). Explorations in Personality by the Sentence Completion Method.

Journal of Applied Psychology, 30, 169–181.

Rotter, J., & Willerman, B. (1947). The Incomplete Sentence Test as a Method of

Studying Personality. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 11.

Shor, J. (1946). Report on a Verbal Projective Technique. Journal of Clinical Psychology,

2, 279–282.

Stein, M. L. (1947). The Use of a Sentence Completion Test For the Diagnosis of

Personality. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 3, 47–56.

Sengupta, U., Singh, A. R., & Jahan, M. (2023). Variations in Post-hypnotic Suggestion

for managing Dissociative Conversion Disorder using Projective Tests-A Case Study. SIS

Journal of Projective Psychology & Mental Health, 30(1).

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SSCT Sentence Completion Test, https://www.studocu.com/in/document/christ-deemed-

to-be-university/psychology/ssct-sentence-completion-test/30946115.

Tendler, A. D. (1930). A Preliminary Report on a Test for Emotional Insight. Journal of

Applied Psychology, 14, 123–136.

Tendler, A. D. (1941). The Value of the Responses in a Free-Association Test as

Indicators of Personal Traits. Journal of Applied Psychology, 25, 200–201.