NCJ Number
69590
Journal
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 8 Issue: 4 Dated: (December 1979) Pages: 379-392
Date Published
1979
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study indicates that for white, middle class males, the Rorschach can significantly distinguish adolescents identified as delinquent from non-delinquent adolescents.
Abstract
Rorschach productions from 38 normal and 30 delinquent white male adolescents were scored by three Ph.D. clinical psychologists according to the method given by Beck. The groups were equated for IQ, social class, and age at the time of testing. The Hollingshead Two Factor Index of Social Position (1957) was used to assess social class, and the Vocabulary subtest of Wechsler's intelligence scales was administered to obtain an estimate of IQ. The normal group received the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, while the delinquents received either the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children or its revised edition. Rorschach scales representative of various personality dimensions were subjected to a linear discriminant analysis. The results showed highly significant and accurate differentiation between the groups; however, the Affective Ratio was the only scale that heavily contributed to the discrimination. The difference between the groups on this scale was attributed to the delinquents' passive cognitive style. The results also lend support to the notion that delinquents differ from normals along the dimension of impulsivity, a finding relevant to psychodynamic theories of delinquency as reflective of serious superego deficits. Fuller consideration of Rorschach symbolic content and qualitative features of response is recommended. Two tables, five footnotes and 48 references are provided. (Author abstract modified)