Note on the Definition and Ethics of Projective Tests

It is suggested that the definition of projective tests as assessment procedures which use ambiguous figures does not differentiate them from other procedures; and, to the extent that such a definition does differentiate, it describes a procedure that is inconsistent with current standards of ethical practice. An alternative definition, emphasizing the wide number of scorable responses elicited, is more ethical and serves to establish the relation of responses to projective test structure to psychometric tests through the more scientific bandwidth-fidelity issue of psychological assessment.