Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
projective technique

projective technique

8.5
A method in psychology where people describe unclear pictures to show hidden feelings
  • noun
  • /prəˈdʒɛktɪv tɪˈkiːk/
  • Specialized
translation icon : técnica proyectiva
  • One common projective technique involves showing a person an ambiguous image and asking them what they see.

Examples

  • Hence, the bewildering array of ways of measuring it ranges from projective techniques to cognitive and pen-and-paper questionnaires.

    Academic text (1995)

  • As an outsider who is not an advocate of projective technique tests, I would have thought they might be able to fudge and explain away their failure to do so by claiming that Hooker did not use a representative sample or skewed its selection.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Barona, A., & Hernandez, A. (1990). Use of Projective Techniques in the Assessment of Hispanic School Children.

    Academic text (1991)

  • In therapy, the psychologist used a projective technique to help the patient explore their hidden emotions.

  • The researcher found that using a projective technique allowed participants to reveal deeply personal insights.

Synonyms

projective test
vsprojective technique
  • Specialized
1 8.3

A way to find a person's personality by asking them about unclear pictures to show hidden feelings

is a psychological method presenting ambiguous stimuli to reveal unconscious personality aspects
projective device
vsprojective technique
  • Specialized
9.9

A test that asks people to say what unclear pictures or situations show to reveal hidden feelings

is a broader methodological approach focused on eliciting unconscious material rather than an instrument

How Revealing

Rorschach test
  • Specialized
3 8.5
Thematic Apperception Test
  • Specialized
9.7
projective technique
  • Specialized
8.5
encounter group
  • Specialized
1 8.3
observation
  • Specialized
57 3.2
self-report inventory
  • Specialized
6.8
questionnaire
49 3.4

Surface Forms

projective technique singular
projective techniques plural

Morphology

projective + technique

The phrase is partially compositional: 'technique' clearly indicates a method, and 'projective' signals involvement of 'projection' so a learner might infer it is a method that elicits or projects something from a person. However, the specific psychological sense—using ambiguous stimuli to reveal unconscious aspects—is technical and metaphorical and not fully predictable from the constituents for an average B1 learner without domain knowledge.

Etymology

The method projective technique gets its name from project, which means to put or 'throw' your own feelings onto something, and technique, meaning a way of testing. Imagine showing someone a strange picture and asking what they see; because people 'project' their feelings onto the picture, the test can show hidden parts of their personality.