Journal of Projective Psychology and Mental Health: Volume 32, Number 2, July 2025 Editorial |
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| 1. Editorial: Cancer Patients in Assessment: Insights from a Bibliometric Analysis of the Journal Psycho-Oncology, Chris Piotrowski, pages 61-64. According to recent American Cancer Society estimates, the burden of cancer incidence and morbidity continues to escalate at alarming rates (Siegel et al., 2024; Sung et al., 2021), encompassing both physical and psychological impairment. In the assessment enterprise, clients frequently present with copious health problems and a sizeable minority of these examinees struggle with serious medical conditions, such as cancer (see Bell et al., 1953). But what unique aspects does a cancer diagnosis play in psychological evaluation protocols? Perhaps, this is most applicable to the use of Inkblot measures, such as the SIS-Series and the Rorschach where somatization is a key clinical element, as reflected in the research literature (Cassell & Dubey, 1996; Georgoff, 1991; Marchioro et al., 2005; Mukherjee et al., 2023; Schon & Bard, 1958; Signorelli, 2015; Tofani & Vaz, 2007; Venturini & Pheulpin, 2021). Hence, what are the most prominent mental health issues and challenges in the lives of cancer patients? Secondly, to what extent does the psychological examiner consider the examinee’s cancer diagnosis as a potential critical factor in the clinical productivity evident through psychological and projective testing? The field of Psycho-Oncology constitutes a specialty area within healthcare psychology (Kissane, 2022). Yet, there is scant research regarding the nature of the intellectual structure and extant scholarship reflecting this area of study. One approach to gaining an understanding on the breadth and scope of the extensive body of scientific knowledge that spans Psych-Oncology is the use of bibliometric analysis. To this end, I conducted a bibliometric analysis of contemporary studies indexed in the journal Psycho-Oncology from 2018 to 2024, which determined the most prominent topics of research attention published in this top-tier journal. Based on the analysis, I identified the core mental health issues that permeate the life of cancer patients. These central, most salient, issues should be at the forefront of clinical concern and attention of the examining psychologist during the psychological assessment of cancer patients. Overall, the findings of this analysis seem to confirm that contemporary research in the area of Psych-Oncology spans a broad range of salient topics central to the mental health and psychological dynamics of cancer patients, issues frequently encountered in the assessment enterprise (Langford et al., 2020). Clinicians need to be cognizant of these issues and their potential significance to projective testing protocols. Further research is needed to determine critical aspects of not only the mental health status of cancer patients, but also the significance of these factors and their impact on clinical data revealed via psychological and projective assessment, including the examinees’ reference to pain concerns (see Piotrowski, 2020; Piotrowski & Lubin, 1990). 2. Trauma Research: Contemporary Under-Studied Areas of Scholarly Investigation, Chris Piotrowski, pages 65-71. The study of psychological trauma and associated stressors has attracted extensive scholarly attention in the social sciences. The current investigation utilized a bibliometric approach to examine recent topical investigatory coverage across 3 prominent journals in the field of trauma psychology: Traumatology, Journal of Traumatic Stress, and Psychological Trauma. The main focus was to determine topical areas that attract sparse coverage in these publications over recent years. The content analysis identified copious topics that represent less than 1% of the peer-reviewed studies across the 3 datasets of published articles. Most noteworthy: acute stress disorder, polytrauma, cumulative trauma, mass/school shootings, the disabled, catastrophizing, sexual harassment, divorce, poverty, and pre-existing conditions. These findings should a) illuminate our understanding of under-studied areas in trauma research, b) promote the use of multi-database search strategies during the literature review process, and c) provide a catalyst and descriptive framework for further bibliometric research on the sub-field of trauma psychology. 3. A Rorschach Trauma Content Index and PCL-R Understanding of Female and Male Psychopaths, Jason M. Smith & Carl B. Gacono, pages 72-82 Trauma histories are ubiquitous within offender populations. Prevalence rates for trauma related diagnoses range from 12-54% for females and 4-21% for males (Adams et al., 2017). Much of the psychopathy/trauma literature from the past 20 years addresses methodological issues that obfuscate their findings (Cunliffe et al., 2021b). In this study, the relationship between trauma and psychopathy is explored by comparing the Rorschach Trauma Content Index between female psychopaths (n = 115) and male psychopaths (n = 44). Rather than being linear this relationship appears to be comorbid. Trauma-related disorders do not negate the presence of psychopathy. Offenders, both psychopathic and non-psychopathic, can exhibit histories of trauma. Total TCI scores do not differentiate among these offenders related to their histories of trauma. Our findings are used to explore what the TCI may be measuring in this offender population. 4. Schafer’s (1954) “Constants in the Patient’s Psychological Position” in Rorschach Testing: Implied Consent & Case Illustration, Jed Yalof, pages 83-90, Securing a patient‘s informed consent (American Psychological Association Practice Directorate, 2024) to a psychological evaluation includes, under most conditions, clarifying the client‘s understanding of the reason for the referral and goals of the evaluation; record keeping and storage; fees and payment; confidentiality, HIPAA, and legal parameters; contact policy; report recipients; feedback procedure; voluntary participation; and freedom to withdraw from the evaluation without penalty. Informed consent is a legal term and differs from implied consent (Nosak et al., 2011), which includes psychological processes outside of conscious awareness or control. Roy Schafer‘s (1954) description of ―constants in the patient‘s psychological position‖ appears consistent with the notion of implied consent as applied to a psychodynamic understanding of Rorschach test administration. Schafer‘s constants are represented by: (a) self-exposure in the absence of trust, (b) loss of control in the interpersonal relationship, (c) the danger of self-confrontation, (d) regressive temptations, and (e) the danger of freedom. In this study, I apply these constants in an integrative way, following test administration stages used by the Rorschach Performance Assessment System (R-PAS; Meyer et al., 2011) and the Comprehensive System revised (CS-R; Exner et al., 2022). 5. The Past, Present, and Future of the Psychology of Celebrity and Celebrity Worship: A Bibliometric Study, Mostafa Ahadi, Mara Aruguete, Lynn E. McCutcheon, & Ágnes Zsila, pages 91-99. The issue of Celebrity Worship is on the rise. Consequently, academic research on celebrities and Celebrity Worship across disciplines has increased accordingly, resulting in an increase of scholarly publications across diverse journals. Notably, psychology has been a significant field of inquiry regarding this phenomenon for nearly three decades. This study aims to analyze the body of extant scholarship published on celebrity worship. The literature reviewed included 983 documents from the Scopus database (articles, reviews, and conference papers) published in English, from 1963 to 2025. Data were analyzed using VOS viewers, employing various bibliometric indicators to create a scientific map that illustrates the trajectory of this field. Overall, the findings indicate that the psychology of celebrity worship has increasingly addressed issues related to personality and health psychological correlates in recent years. Furthermore, the expansion of social media has significantly influenced research in this subject area. The findings underscore the increasing significance of celebrity worship in psychological research, particularly with regard to personality and health. Moreover, the influence of social media is evident across this growing body of literature, suggesting a dynamic evolution in this field. 6. The Magic of Interpersonal Decentering: Perspective-taking Maturation in the Harry Potter Series, Kylie Jones, Violet (Katayoun) Tehrani & Sharon Rae Jenkins, pages 100-112. In studies of children‟s reading, children who read more fiction showed increased scores on their theory of mind complexity tasks. Mature perspective-taking facilitates people‟s understanding of themselves and others by enabling them to anticipate other people‟s responses to their actions. The current study explored a hypothesized developmental feature of fiction content that might relate to theory of mind maturation observed in readers of J. K. Rowling‟s Harry Potter series. Since the seven-book series spans the main characters‟ transition from late childhood to late adolescence (approximately ages 11-18), the text content should reflect the characters‟ theory of mind/perspective-taking maturation from Piaget‟s concrete operational reasoning to mature formal operational cognition. Interpersonal decentering is a storytelling measure of perspective-taking based on Piaget‟s theory applied to social interaction. In the current design, interpersonal decentering was scored for 25 pages from each Potter book by trained, non-Potter-reading scorers. The hypothesis of a linear trend showing increased decentering maturation was supported at the page sequence level for books 2 through 7. These findings suggest that the compelling nature of Harry Potter lies in part in its trajectory of theory of mind maturation as well as its larger themes. These results may highlight elements of a compelling narrative that sharpen students‟ interpersonal skills and prosocial behaviors. 7. Marital Conflict and Couple Therapy: A Case Study, Vijay Pathak, Deepali Batra & Bankey Lal Dubey, Pages 31-39. This case study examines marital conflict in a couple who sought therapeutic intervention. The Somatic Inkblot Test (SIT) was administered to assess the individuals' psychological dynamics. The husband's SIT responses revealed a desire for relational preservation, alongside indications of emotional distress and social withdrawal. Conversely, the wife's responses highlighted somatic concerns, a yearning for spousal affection, and frustration stemming from incongruence between marital expectations and experienced reality. Collectively, the findings from both cases evidenced significant marital discord, characterized by emotional pain and perceived disconnection. Therapeutic interventions, incorporating both pharmacological and psychotherapeutic modalities, were implemented. Follow-up assessments within a six-week period indicated a positive shift towards improved relational harmony. |
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