Journal of Projective Psychology and Mental Health: Volume 7, Number 1, Jan 2000 Editorial |
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| 1. Editorial, David J. Sperbeck, Ph.D., pages 1-2. It is with great pride that I write this editorial introducing the January 2000 edition of the Journal of Projective Psychology and Mental Health. As a colleague and friend of Dr. Wilfred Cassell for nearly twenty years, I have seen his dedication to the progressive scientific development of the Somatic Inkblot Test. I have been pleased to consult on many cases over the years with Dr. Cassell and his patients can attest to the clinical value of the SIS with respect to this instrument's capacity to unearth deeply repressed and usually foundational emotional memories, making them available for therapeutic reconstruction and rehabilitation. As socially responsible mental health practitioners, it is especially incumbent upon us all to monitor and help to remediate social and human injustice wherever and whenever we experience it's presence. As we enter the new millennium, we face a world where hate crimes, ethnic cleansing, and war-related human atrocities deface our planet. We live in a world dominated by information overload where children face a greater likelihood of developing a mental disorder than at any other time in history. It is therefore arguably more important now than at any other time in our history that we as mental health practitioners develop efficacious instruments for relieving human suffering. This edition of the Journal of Projective Psychology and Mental Health takes on these weighty problems and gives us hope for scientifically addressing the problems experienced by sufferers of debilitating stress. We are treated to a deeply sobering application of the SIS in the article by Cassell, and Dubey wherein the authors probe the fragile psyches of two very divergent cases of Posttraumatic Stress Disordered patients. In this article, the power of the SIS as a diagnostic tool for helping the clinician evaluate the (dis-) equilibrium between good and evil, id and superego, and the real versus ideal self, all have very important treatment planning implications for helping survivors of extremely distressing experiences. As the reader will discern from the rich SIS data elicited from the case studies presented, the diagnostician will find an incredible wealth of information from which to launch cognitive restructuring therapy or even more foundational psychotherapeutic interventions. Such powerful emotional experiences elicited from the SIS images, particularly in the video modality, have helped define the SIS as one of the prominent projective assessment methodology and therapy tools in the industry today. It is with great enthusiasm and a heightened sense of optimism for our profession's future that I introduce you to this issue and its wealth of helpful techniques for relieving the suffering of our clients. It is my hope that after a careful review of this edition of the Journal of Projective Psychology & Mental Health, you will share my optimism. 2. Inkblot Responses as an Aide to Therapy, Bankey L.Dubey and Wilfred A. Cassell, pages 3-10. Most clinicians consider the use of inkblot testing such as the Rorschach, primarily for its diagnostic applications. In recent years, the widespread use of numerical scoring systems such as those developed by Klopfer and Exner, have tended to bypass the therapeutic value of Herman's inkblots in stimulating imagery for free association and content analysis. This failure partially relates to the fact that most modern therapists are not adequately trained in this approach for recalling painful memories and PTSD dreams. In the past psychoanalysts such as Roy Schafer did preliminary explorations involving Rorschach content analysis as an aide in treatment, Another reason for the original ten plates becoming relatively unused as an aide to therapy concerns the fact that the color-form configurations lack sufficient structure to routinely stimulate clinically relevant interview themes. 3. . Professional Activities, Cultural Background and Social Interaction in the Zulliger Collective Technique, Cicero Emidio Vaz, pages 11-26. This paper reports a research carried out with the Zulliger Technique focused on professional activity, culture and personality issues. The author has approached the productiveness, performance capabilities, social interaction and rational control levels in a normative sample of adolescent and adult groups in Southern Brazil. The Zulliger Technique collective form, according to Klopfers's system , was given to a total of 740 men and 601 women. Data was studied according to their 15 professional categories as follows: nurse (60), physician (64), odontologist (21), pharmacist (10), professor (41), army activities (154), manager (17), aircraft pilot (48), bank teller (15), receptionist (11), office clerk (48), undertaker (33), workman (54) and household activities (15) , None of them had learning or behavioural problems . The Wilcoxon statistical form was used for k independent samples and Pearson correlation for comparing and correlating data. A review was made responses (R) such as production capacity and performance, rational control (F), objective perception (F+%) search for social contact (Fc, c, cF) and social interaction (M, FC,Fc). The results pointed out a higher score of R within those professional categories with higher education levels and economic power; no difference was found between M and FC scores within professional categories with higher and lower levels of education and economic power. However, different Fc+ cF + c scores according to education and economic levels were found within professional categories. Finally, the influence of cultural background in data from the Zulliger Technique collective form is discussed. 4. The Cross Cultural and Clinical Values of Fairy Tales and the Fairy Tale Test, Carina Coulacoglou, pages 27-38. The fairy Tale Test can be effectively employed as a basic technique for clinical assessment of personality. The test standardized on a large sample of non-referred children and found to be useful in assessing developmental changes, or situational effects in children. Most importantly, because of the universal values found in fairy tales, the FTT can prove to be a very useful technique in cross cultural personality research. 5. Distortions of Body Image on SIS-II and D.A.P. Tests, S.K. Verma, Harprit Kaur and Rachna Bhargava, pages 39-43. Our own concept of our body becomes distorted by, interactions of different variables like aging process, physical disorders, psychological disorders and surgical interventions. It can be reflected through projective techniques like inkblot techniques and human figure drawings. We would like to share our experiences with Draw-a-Person Test and Somatic Inkblot Series - II with other mental health professionals through this Journal- SIS Journal of Projective Psychology and Mental Health. We invite reader's comments to improve our and other Indian reader's understanding of this complex process, which affects our behaviour to a large extent. 6. Treatment of Phobia & other Neurotic Disorders: the Role of Behavioral Medicine, K.S. Sengar and A. K. Srivastava, pages 44-48. Anxiety is the phenomenon which improves the work performance of the individual but at the same time as it starts persisting for a long time it becomes pathological and starts producing several obstructions in the life of the individual. However it reduces the performance too. Since long back it has been described in the literature and termed as palpitating heart, D'Costa syndrome etc. The name of the pathological anxiety has been changed several times but sign & symptoms remain the same. Presently with the recent development of psychiatry it has been termed as obsession compulsion disorder, phobic disorder etc. Recent researches (Amine Hypothesis) give a new hope with the assumption that certain biochemical changes of the brain are the causative factor for such illnesses. In this context, poor recovery of the patient through medicines put a query on amine hypothesis and success rate of therapeutic means either alone or adjusted with chemotherapy indicates that causative factors whatsoever are, but the role of behavioural medicine in the treatment of different psychological disorders cannot be ignored. The branch of Behavioural Medicine is proving its worth well and becoming an essential modality for the treatment of various psychological disorders, prevention of relapses and proper rehabilitation of the patient in society and work as well. 7. Psychological Factors in Drug Addicts and Normals: A Comparative Study, Gopa Mitra & Anjana Mukhopadhway, pages 49-70. The study compared the three drug abuser groups namely, heroin (N=98), brown sugar (n=79) and tidigesic (N=70) and matched normals (N=48) in terms of level of depression, social anxiety and social motive components as well as the differences in pathological contents and indices of personality. The follow-up groups. i.e. rehabilitated (N=6) and the relapsed (N=35) were also assessed to search out support for the outcome. BDI, SIS I Social Evaluative Anxiety Scale (SAD & FNE) and AMS were used to explore the socio-psychological differences among the groups. Besides, the investigation has also taken an account of the follow-up data comparing the results with their aboriginal data of the same subjects. F-ratio used for the inference of the results obtained through questionnaires on t-applied to compare the percentage of the pathological contents and SIS indices. Mann –Whitney U-test explored the authenticity of acceptance and rejection of null hypotheses and subsequently the directional hypothesis. Levels of depression and social anxiety (SAD & FINE) were reported to be significantly high among drug addict and follow-up relapsed groups with low social approval motive when compared with the normal and follow-up rehabs groups. Pathological components, i.e. high PAS. D and Plow HAS were proved in the comparison, atypical, (Aty) anatomy. (Ant) Sex and human (H) SIS indices were reportedly discriminated the clinical groups. NB, SR, SA the low motive factors were reportedly discriminated against in the clinical groups. NB, SR, SA the low motive factors were reportedly improved in the SA the low motive factors were reportedly improved in the rehabilitated group. 8. Some Popular Misconceptions about Inkblot Techniques, S.K. Verma, pages 71-73. In clinical practice, one comes across many fears, misgiving, apprehensions and misconceptions about projective techniques, particularly about the inkblot techniques. These misconceptions in the general population need to be effectively removed or controlled at least if it is not possible to remove them completely. This needs to be done at an early date and sooner the better for all concerned-before it takes root and starts biasing or poisoning the young scientists mind against them and their usefulness or uselessness as the case might be. Unrealistic expectations may be as bad as misconceptions. |
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