Art meets Psychology: The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
This test is based on the mechanism of projection and how it shows material from the unconscious. There are 31 different images.
How it works: Every time an image is shown to the "patient", they must say what they think is happening in the picture, what are the subjects feeling or thinking, and what was happening before and after the picture, preferably telling a little story about it.
The patient should feel free to say whatever they want, and encouraged not to be defensive about it, just say the things as they come to their mind. In that way the material from the unconscious starts coming out.
One can write what the patient says to later read it and see what issues they might be projecting. Every image was designed with a certain topic or theme in mind, but all the answers are valid and can be analyzed.
It is funny that even if you know what this test is about and how it works, if you "take it", it will still make you project and show your issues every time. One should just get immersed in the test and focus on saying what comes to mind without feeling too defensive.
