Rotter's Incomplete Sentences Blank By Julian Rotter Outline

Introduction

Projective tests are psychological assessments that utilize ambiguous stimuli to elicit responses, revealing
aspects of an individual's personality by projecting internal attitudes, traits, and behavior patterns onto
external stimuli. They emerged from the psychoanalytic school of thought, which posited that people
harbor unconscious thoughts or urges, aiming to uncover hidden feelings, desires, and conflicts that
remain beyond conscious awareness.

The development of projective techniques has been gradual, with a "long past but a short history,"
evolving over time. Despite their enduring presence in personality research and therapeutic practice,
psychologists hold varying opinions regarding their value and reliability.

These tests typically employ ambiguous stimuli or tasks with brief, general instructions, allowing
individuals to freely engage their imagination. Responses to these stimuli reflect fundamental aspects of
psychological functioning, serving as a screen onto which respondents project their characteristic thought
processes, needs, anxieties, and conflicts. Projective tests are effective in exploring the entirety of an
individual's personality, particularly adept at detecting covert or unconscious traits.

The use of unstructured or ambiguous stimuli reduces the likelihood of defensive reactions from
respondents, making them conducive to revealing deeper psychological insights. Originating in clinical
settings, the earliest projective technique involved the interpretation of inkblots.

II. Background

The Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank (RISB) is a semi-structured projective test designed to assess
personality and socioemotional functioning. Initially developed in the 1940s for screening soldiers by
Julian Rotter and Benjamin Willerman, it later evolved into a comprehensive tool for clinical assessment
and research. The first edition, published in 1950 by Julian Rotter and Janet Rafferty, aimed to measure
adjustment, detect psychopathology, guide diagnosis, and facilitate treatment planning. Each response on
the RISB reflects unconscious feelings and intentions, focusing on self-perception, interpersonal
interactions, and coping abilities.

Over the years, psychologists have categorized the RISB for various age groups, incorporating it into
comprehensive psychological assessments and research studies. In 1992, the second edition was released
through the efforts of Julian B. Rotter, Michael I. Lah, and Janet E. Rafferty, featuring 40 sentence stems
categorized for high school, college, and adult levels. This updated version includes research support,
normative data, scoring guidelines, case studies, and the flexibility to administer to individuals or groups.
Widely used across sectors such as education, healthcare, business, and research, the RISB remains a
valuable tool for understanding psychosocial functioning.

Theoretical Framework

• Rotter's Incomplete Sentences Blank reflect the influence of psychoanalytic concepts

- There are also scattered attempts to lay a foundation in stimulus response theory and in
perceptual theories of personality
 - It should be noted that the specific techniques need not be evaluated in the light of their particular
theoretical slants or historical origins

III. Test Description

The Rotter’s Incomplete Sentences Blank (RISB) comprises 40 items, with each item featuring a sentence
stem for the examinee to complete with their own thoughts. Available in three forms tailored for different
populations—Adult, College, and High School—the content is mostly identical, with a few stems adjusted
to suit each group's needs.

Each page of the RISB contains 40 items printed on both sides of an 8 by 11-inch sheet. As a semi-
structured projective test, the examinee must weave the sentence stems into cohesive thoughts, providing
insight into their psychological makeup and thought processes.

IV. Rationale

The underlying assumption of this projective test is that examinees project their wishes, desires, fears, and
attitudes into the sentences which they create.

The development of the ISB had two primary objectives. Firstly, it aimed to offer an objective screening
and experimental tool with some of the benefits of projective methods, while also being cost-effective to
administer and score.

Secondly, it sought to provide specific diagnostic information useful for treatment purposes without
aiming to describe the entirety of an individual's personality or uncover deep layers of personality
structure.

Instead, its goal was to save clinicians time by structuring initial interviews effectively, potentially
preventing costly mistakes made in early patient interactions. Overall, while it may not provide information
beyond what a lengthy interview could, it offers a time-saving advantage and aids in avoiding initial
missteps with patients.

It differs from other projective techniques in several aspects.

1. Examinees responding to the RISB are generally more aware of the feelings, attitudes and fears
they are disclosing because the task is more structured

2. Purpose of testing -because RISB and other sentence completion methods have been designed
principally to screen for emotional maladjustment

V. Administration

The Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank (RISB) is a projective personality test that can be administered
either individually or in a group setting. Typically, a trained clinician or psychologist administers the test. It
comprises 40 incomplete sentences, each consisting of one or two words. The subject is prompted to
complete each sentence in any manner they deem fit. There are no right or wrong answers, and subjects
are encouraged to respond honestly and spontaneously.

Usually conducted in a quiet environment to avoid interruptions, the clinician reads aloud the incomplete
sentences, while the subject writes their responses in the provided blank spaces. The test generally takes
about 20 minutes to complete.
 The instruction for the test is "Complete these sentences to express your real feelings. Try to do
everyone. Be sure to make a complete sentence."

Also, remind the respondent to complete all the sentences and that he will be timed for his
responses there are no right or wrong answers

They should simply respond however they feel, and that they should try to complete as many of
the items as they can

VI. Scoring and Interpretation

- Scoring consist of assigning a weight to each item ranging from 0 (most positive) to 6 (most
conflict) depending upon on the content of the sentence formed.
- 3 (neutral) do not clearly fall into either positive or the conflict category.

Example:

My father always frightened me, (6)

My father always worked very hard. (3)

My father always loved me and made me laugh. (0)

Responses are scored as the degree of the conflict expressed, the amount of optimism shown, the
presence of qualifying statements, the length of responses and omissions.

Short concrete answers with neutral to positive content receive high scores.

Long answers with depressed or anxious content receive low scores.

POSITIVE RESPONSES

Express a healthy or hopeful frame of mind categorized as P1 P2 P3:

(2 Score) P1 - specific feelings towards people and things

(1 Score) P2-test indicated a generalized feeling towards people, indicates goals, social and
adjustment, opinion, humor and good family life.

(0 Score) P3 - clearly very good responses: warm and accepting.

Such positive responses are positive attitudes, optimism, warm acceptance and goal natured humor.

CONFLICT RESPONSES

Express an unhealthy or maladjusted frame of mind such as hostility, pessimism, mention of specific
problems or symptoms and negative attitude, which is categorized into C1 C2 C3:

(4 Score) C1- responses wherein what is experienced and matter of world state of affairs,
forwarded problems, school difficulties, identification within a minority groups, physical illness,
minority problems.
 (5 Score) C2 - more serious; responses that refer to broader and more generalized difficulties,
expressions of inferiority feelings, concern over vocational choice, difficulty in heterosexual
relationship, generalized social

difficulty.

(6 Score) C3- most serious; truly an indication of maladjustment, suicidal wishes, sexual conflict,
family problem, fears of insanity, strong negative inferred inner conflict.

NEUTRAL RESPONSES

-Are simple descriptions, common sayings or catch phrases, or simply lacking in personal reference.

(3 Score) N3 – Sentences showing no emotions

-After all the items have been scored, the individual item scores are added together to obtain a total score,
which provide an overall index of maladjustment.

-If any items were left blank or not scored, the total score is prorated so that it is comparable to those
protocols with a full 40 responses.

OMISSION

-If the client skipped any sentence that will come under omission.

Note: If the client has more than 20 omissions, then the test will not be considered for scoring.

Cut-Off Score

In determining whether subjects were adjusted or maladjusted, Rotter and Rafferty found a score of 135
to be most efficient.

Scoring depends on psychologist or with the reference to the scoring examples in the manual.

Up to 135 scores are considered to be Normal (Socially Adjusted)

More than 135 score will show Maladjustments

Different levels:
1ST LEVEL

Content of the responses, that is, what the subject has stated.

a.) Familial

parents

siblings

spouse

b.) Social and Sexual

people in general

opposite sex

social activities

c.) General attitudes

educational

vocational

religious

economic

2ND LEVEL

- formal aspects of the test protocol

a.) Use of language in responses (spelling errors, grammar, word choices, repeated use of words,
intensity of descriptors, odd language or neologisms) b.) Length of responses

c.) Vagueness of specifity of responses

d.) Following of instructions (whether complete sentences were written, or whether completions
were given that suggest the subject changed or misunderstood the stems)

e.) The handwriting

f.) Presence of erasures

g.) Cross-out words

h.) Omissions

3RD LEVEL

Making of inferences

a.) Frequency with which something is mentioned.

 b.) Conspicuously omitted.

c.) How common or rare the responses are.

VII. Criticism

The positive psychometric properties of the RISB generally have been substantiated by later research.

Reliability and Validity

The reliability of a test refers to the consistency of its scores over time. Studies have demonstrated
that the RISB maintains reliability, with test-retest correlations typically ranging from 0.70 to 0.80.
This indicates that individuals tend to score similarly when taking the RISB on multiple occasions.

Validity, on the other hand, assesses whether the test measures what it intends to. The RISB has
shown validity through various means. It correlates with established personality measures like the
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), indicating it measures similar constructs.
Additionally, it has predictive validity, as evidenced by its ability to forecast behaviors such as
college dropout rates. This suggests that the RISB can effectively identify individuals at risk for
certain issues.

It has been shown to be a rather sensitive measure of emotional maladjustment among college students
and adults.

Its psychometric advantage over other projective tests, however, has not affected its lower frequency of
use by clinicians, who are critical of its failure to examine more dynamic, deeper level of personality
functioning. Some of its proponents do attempt such analyses through examining the content of the
sentences generated on the RISB, but there has been little research support for this method of
interpretation.

RISB continues to offer the clinician the advantages of group administration and scoring capability,
acceptable reliability and validity estimates, and an objective scoring system, all of which are absent in the
more popular projective tests.

Advantages:

1. Subjects have the freedom to respond in any way they wish.

2. The test purpose is somewhat disguised, making it less obvious what constitutes a "good" or "bad"
answer.

3. Group administration is efficient and doesn't compromise validity.

4. No special training is needed for administration; interpretation relies on the examiner's clinical
experience.

5. Objective scoring is feasible, facilitating screening or experimental use.

6. Administration and scoring times are typically shorter compared to many other tests and projective
techniques.
7. The method is highly adaptable, allowing for the creation of new sentence beginnings tailored to various
purposes.

Disadvantages:

1. While semi-objective scoring is possible, machine scoring isn't feasible, requiring skill and knowledge
for clinical interpretation.

2. The test purpose may be more apparent compared to other projective methods, potentially allowing
sophisticated subjects to manipulate responses.

3. In some cases, particularly with illiterate or uncooperative subjects, insufficient material may be
obtained. Additionally, the method's usefulness for younger children hasn't been fully evaluated, as it
requires writing and language skills.

VIII. Conclusion

The RISB is a projective test that holds relevance for Filipinos, although its predominant usage is in the
United States. Notably, it is not culturally biased, as each item reflects universal experiences common to
all individuals regardless of cultural background, gender, religion, or other factors. The scoring process is
straightforward and lends itself well to administration, while interpretations can be easily tailored to fit
the Filipino cultural context. This flexibility allows responses to be interpreted in a manner consistent with
Filipino cultural norms and values, enhancing the test's applicability within this cultural context.

Sample Scoring and Analysis

A. Scoring

1. I like ... to eat.

2. The happiest time ... is when you are young.

16. Sports . . . are great fun.

17. When I was a child ... I was fat.

18. My nerves . . . are not always calm.

1. 3 Neutral

2. 4 C1

16. 1 P1

17. 4 C1

18. 4 C1

B. Analysis
35. My father ... is dead—his death was merely an anticlimax since his existence as a father ended long
before that.

11. A mother . . . 's greatest responsibility is to her family.

Familial Attitudes

There is no indication that the family and home afford Janice any feeling of security or constitute a positive
aspect of her life. She expresses negative attitudes toward both her mother and father and, perhaps
significantly, does not mention her sibling at all. Outstanding is her extremely hostile attitude toward her
father which continues even after his death, so that she says (item 35), "My father ... is dead—his death
was merely an anticlimax since his existence as a father ended long before that." . . One also suspects a
poor relationship with her mother since she implies that her mother has failed the family when she
comments (item 11), "A mother 's greatest responsibility is to her family."

References:
Cherry, K. C. (2023, April 4). How a projective test is used to measure personality. Verywell Mind.
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-a-projective-test-2795586

Rabin, A. I. (1968). Projective Methods: an historical introduction. In Springer eBooks (pp. 3–17).
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-39577-6_1

Ranjha, A. (2023, August 6). Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank (RISB) » Psychology Roots. Psychology
Roots. https://psychologyroots.com/rotter-incomplete-sentences-blank-risb/

Rotter, J. B., Lah, M., & Rafferty, J. E. (1992). Manual for the Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank: College
Form (2nd ed.). Psychological Corporation.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (1998, July 20). Projective test | Definition, Types, Examples, &
Facts. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/science/projective-test