Abstract
The admissibility of the Rorschach has been a concern of forensic psychologists for many years. The focus of this debate has been the Comprehensive System, which is the most researched of the current Rorschach Systems available in the USA. However, recently, a new, competing system has been published: the Rorschach Performance Assessment System (R-PAS; Meyer et al., Rorschach Performance Assessment System: Administration, Coding, Interpretation, and Technical Manual, 2011). Using Heilbrun’s (Law and Human Behavior 16:257–272, 1992) guidelines as a framework, we examine the admissibility of this new system according to the standards outlined in Daubert (1993) and Frye (1923). We conclude that we have reservations about the admissibility of the R-PAS in court at the present time, notwithstanding ongoing work on this system.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Acklin, M. W., McDowell, C. J., Verschell, M. S., & Chan, D. (2000). Interobserver agreement, intraobserver reliability, and the Rorschach comprehensive system. Journal of Personality Assessment, 74, 15–47.
American Psychological Association. (2013). Support Center. http://www.apa.org/support/about/psych/numbers-us.aspx#answer
Archer, R. P., Buffington-Vollum, J. K., Stredney, R. V., & Handel, R. W. (2006). A survey of psychological test use patterns among forensic psychologists. Journal of Personality Assessment, 87(1), 84–94.
Bornstein, R. F., & Masling, J. M. (2005). The Rorschach oral dependency scale. In R. F. Bornstein & J. M. Masling (Eds.), Scoring the Rorschach: Seven validated systems (pp. 135–157). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, 113 S Ct. 2786 (1993).
Erard, R. E. (2012). Expert testimony using the Rorschach performance assessment system in psychological injury cases. Psychological Injury and the Law, 5, 122–134.
Exner, J. E. (1992). R in Rorschach research: a ghost revisited. Journal of Personality Assessment, 52, 640–647.
Exner, J. E. (2003). The Rorschach: a comprehensive system, vol. 1: Basic foundations (3rd ed.). New York: Wiley.
Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923).
General Electric v. Joiner, 522 U.S. 136 (1997).
Garb, H. N., Wood, J. M., Nezworski, M. T., Grove, W. M., & Stejskal, W. J. (2001). Toward a resolution of the Rorschach controversy. Psychological Assessment, 13, 433–448.
Grove, W., Barden, R., Garb, H., & Lilienfeld, S. (2002). Failure of Rorschach- Comprehensive-System-based testimony to be admissible under the Daubert/Kumho standard. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 8, 216–234.
Gurley, J.R., Hugonnet, M.H., Clemons, M., Friedman, J., McAleney, B., Sheehan, B.L., (2011). Use of Rorschach in court: an examination of case law. Poster presented at the American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Washington, D.C.
Heilbrun, K. (1992). The role of psychological testing in forensic assessment. Law and Human Behavior, 16, 257–272.
Hess, A.K., Zachar, P., & Kramer, J. (2001). [Review of the Rorschach]. In P. S. Plake & J. C. Impara (Eds.). The 14th Mental Measurements Yearbook (pp. 1033–1038). Lincoln, NE: Buros Institute of Mental Measurement.
Hunsley, J., & Bailey, J. M. (1999). The clinical utility of the Rorschach: unfulfilled promises and an uncertain future. Psychological Assessment, 11, 266–277.
Khadivi, A., & Evans, F. B. (2012). The brave new world of forensic Rorschach assessment: comments on the Rorschach special issue. Psychological Injury and the Law, 5, 145–149.
Kuhmo Tire Company Ltd. Et al. v. Carmichael et al., 256 U.S. 137 (1999).
Lally, S. (2003). What tests are acceptable for use in forensic evaluations? A survey of experts. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 34(5), 491–498.
Masling, J., Rabie, L., & Blondheim, S. H. (1967). Obesity, level of aspiration, and Rorschach and TAT measures of oral dependence. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 31, 233–239.
Mattlar, C. (2004). The Rorschach compressive system is reliable, valid, and cost-effective. Rorschachiana, 26, 158–186.
Mattlar, C. (2011). The issue of an evolutionary development of the Rorschach Comprehensive System (RCS) versus a revolutionary change (R-PAS). Published online at http://www.rorschachtraining.com/category/articles/
Meloy, J. R., Hansen, T. L., & Weiner, I. B. (1997). Authority of the Rorschach: Legal citations during the past 50 years. Journal of Personality Assessment, 69, 53–62.
Meyer, G. L. (1992). Response frequency problems in the Rorschach: Clinical and research implications with suggestions for the future. Journal of Personality Assessment, 58, 231–244.
Meyer, G. L., Erdberg, P., & Shaffer, T. W. (2007). Toward international normative reference data for the comprehensive system. Journal of Personality Assessment, 89, S201–S216.
Meyer, G. L., Viglione, D. J., Mihura, J. L., Erard, R. E., & Erdberg, P. (2011). Rorschach Performance Assessment System: administration, coding, interpretation, and technical manual. Toledo: Rorschach Performance Assessment System, LLC.
Mihura, J. L., Meyer, G. J., Dumitrascu, N., & Bombel, G. (2013). The validity of individual Rorschach variables: systemic reviews and meta-analyses of the comprehensive system. Psychological Bulletin, 139, 548–605. doi:10.1037/a0029406
Musewicz, J., Marczyk, G., Knauss, L., & York, D. (2009). Current assessment practice, personality measurement, and Rorschach usage by psychologists. Journal of Personality Assessment, 91(5), 453–461. doi:10.1080/00223890903087976
Pope, K. S., Butcher, J. N., & Seelen, J. (2006). The Courts' recognition, use, and restriction of MMPI-based testimony. In The MMPI, MMPI-2, & MMPI-A in court: a practical guide for expert witnesses and attorneys (3rd ed., pp. 55–66). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Ritzler, B., Erard, R., & Pettigrew, G. (2002a). A final reply to grove and Barden: the relevance of the Rorschach comprehensive system for expert testimony. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 8, 235–246.
Ritzler, B., Erard, R., & Pettigrew, G. (2002b). Protecting the integrity of Rorschach expert witnesses: a reply to Grove and Barden (1999) re: The admissibility of testimony under Daubert/Kumho analyses. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 8, 201–215.
Sahly, J., Shaffer, T. W., Erdberg, P., & O’Toole, S. (2011). Rorschach intercoder reliability for protocol-level comprehensive system variables in an international sample. Journal of Personality Assessment, 93, 592–596.
Urist, J. (1977). The Rorschach test and the assessment of object relations. Journal of Personality Assessment, 41, 3–9.
Viglione, D. J., Blume-Marcovici, A. C., Miller, H. L., Giromini, L., & Meyer, G. J. (2012). An inter-rater reliability study for the Rorschach performance assessment system. Journal of Personality Assessment, 94, 607–612. doi:10.1080/00223891.2012.684118
Viglione, D. J., & Taylor, N. (2003). Empirical support for interrater reliability of Rorschach comprehensive system coding. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 58, 111–121.
Wechsler, D. (2008). Wechsler adult intelligence scale (4th ed.). San Antonio: Psychological Corporation.
Wood, J. M., Lilienfeld, S. O., Garb, H. N., & Nezworski, M. T. (2000). The Rorschach test in clinical diagnosis: a critical review, with a backward look at Garfield (1947). Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56, 395–430.
Wood, J. M., Nezworski, M. T., & Stejskal, W. J. (1996). The Comprehensive System for the Rorschach: A critical review. Psychological Science, 7(1), 3–9.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gurley, J.R., Sheehan, B.L., Piechowski, L.D. et al. The Admissibility of the R-PAS in Court. Psychol. Inj. and Law 7, 9–17 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12207-014-9182-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12207-014-9182-2