Inkblot tests: what seeing shapes in a blot can and cannot tell you

Look at a cloud long enough and you will see a face, an animal or a ship. In 1921 the Swiss psychiatrist Hermann Rorschach published a book built on that habit of the mind. He showed patients ten symmetrical inkblots, asked what they saw, and tried to link the answers to their personality and mental state.

The idea behind it is called projection: when a picture is vague, you fill it in with what is already in your head. Tests built on that idea are called projective tests.

What the research says

For about a hundred years psychologists have argued about how much the Rorschach can tell. In 2000 Scott Lilienfeld, James Wood and Howard Garb reviewed the evidence on projective techniques. Their conclusion was that a few Rorschach scores, mainly those related to disordered thinking, had support, while most of the popular interpretations did not. Later scoring systems kept fewer, better-supported scores, and the debate continues among clinicians.

Two points are widely accepted. First, how you describe an inkblot depends on many things besides personality: your mood, your vocabulary, how tired you are, what you saw on the way in. Second, interpreting free answers requires a trained person and a strict scoring system. A test with four answers to pick from is not the Rorschach.

What our test is

Our inkblot perception test uses ten abstract symmetrical images that we made ourselves. They are not Rorschach's blots. For each image you choose one of four descriptions. Each description belongs to one of four perception styles:

• Social orientation: you tend to see people, faces or groups
• Creativity: you see movement, fantasy figures or unusual objects
• Analytical thinking: you notice symmetry, structure or geometric shapes
• Emotionality: you see nature, animals or images tied to feelings

Your result shows what share of your ten picks fell into each style. The test has not been validated and is not a psychological diagnosis. Treat it as a playful look at what catches your eye first, not as a measure of personality.

How to read your result

If one style clearly dominates, ask whether it matches how you notice things in daily life. Someone who always sees faces may also be the person who reads the mood in a room first. Someone who sees grids and symmetry may be the one who spots the error in a spreadsheet. If it does not match, trust your daily life over the ten pictures.

An even spread across the four styles is a common result. It usually means the images did not pull you strongly in one direction.

Your picks can also change from one day to the next. If you take the test again in a week and get a different top style, that tells you more about the test than about you.

If you want a measure, not a game

To learn about your personality with a questionnaire that has research behind it, try the Big Five test or the TIPI if you only have a minute. For what the five traits mean, read the Big Five: what does it really say about you.