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Be careful because you can be accused of pedophilia or deprived of parental rights only on the basis of a test that some psychologists compare to reading tea leaves.
The fact that Marek W. noticed a bird in the spots presented to him during psychological tests meant that the expert psychologist wrote that he was characterized by instability and a tendency to change. The opinion was prepared for the court, which was to decide whether it could supervise. my son.
Tests consisting in a subjective interpretation by a psychologist of associations evoked by the drawn spots in the examined person are often the basis for issuing judgments in court. Over a hundred scientists, psychologists-practitioners and students are protesting against the use of the so-called projection testing by forensic and clinical psychologists.
Wrong psychological expertise
Attorney Rafał Wąworek from the Association of the Father and Child Rights Center tells about the case of his client Marek W., who left for England with his wife and children. When the spouses decided to separate, the older son returned with his father to Poland. The boy was 14 years old. Marek W. is a highly qualified electronics engineer and he has found a good job in Poland without any problems. His wife demanded – against the child’s will – that the older son return to her. When making a decision, the court asked an expert psychologist for an opinion. – Because my client saw a bird in the spot shown to him, the expert psychologist concluded on this basis that it was characterized by instability and a tendency to change – says the patron. – The boy was taken from him. He adds that if his client were a professional soldier, he would be able to see the gun. – Then it is scary to think what conclusions the interpreting psychologist would reach – he adds. Attorney Wąworek claims that he does not mind being given opinions by expert psychologists. However, he would like them to use less arbitrary methods.
Another victim, Mariusz D., has been struggling with the stigma of a pedophile and incest for five years. The notification to the prosecutor’s office was based on the expertise of a psychologist based on projection tests carried out on his children. Mariusz D.’s wife, after several years of marriage, ordered him to move out of the house. She suspected him of treason. Later she demanded enormous money from him. When he refused, she accused him of molesting two children. After five years, the case was discontinued, and the children stayed with their father by the decision of the probation officer. Mother visits them twice a month. – Nobody is able to understand how much I have been hurt and how much I suffered during these five years – says Mariusz D. – What is worse, the court’s verdict does not say that there was no child molestation, but that there is no evidence – he adds.
See also: Will pharmacological castration help in the fight against pedophilia?
Expert opinion
The case of Bogusław S., a well-known Krakow actor, presenter and journalist, accused by his betrayed partner of molesting their 6-year-old son is still pending. He spent three months in pre-trial detention accused of causing his son to engage in sexual acts on at least two occasions between 2001 and 2002. Then the court sentenced him to two years in prison. The defense appealed and the appellate court quashed the sentence. The process started all over again. Psychologist Dr. Barbara Gujska from the Stop Manipulation Association believes that the expert’s opinion was based on useless projection tests. Dr. Gujska also talks about the case of a sports coach, who was sentenced to 9 years in prison for sexual harassment of his charges. – We managed to get him out of prison after seven years, but it was already the wreckage of a man with a great sense of harm. The judgment was based on the opinion of only one expert based on projection tests. – These psychological opinions write nonsense that become the basis of many years of conviction – Dr. Gujska is indignant. – Recently, I spoke as an expert on another opinion issued by a psychologist. The mother of a 2,5-year-old girl and her partner were accused of molesting her daughter. The accusation was brought by her ex-mother-in-law. The expert conducted the test with the use of anatomical dolls. The baby is given naked dolls with sexual organs to play with and watched as she plays with them. I do not rule out that it may be a source of information about the child’s experiences, but it does not constitute an irrefutable proof of the parents’ guilt. Meanwhile, judges, not knowing the working methods of expert psychologists, often treat their opinions as an oracle, he says. – Since the phenomenon of domestic violence exists and sexual abuse of children is a common disgust, the adjudicating persons do not always bother to verify the opinion of experts – he adds.
Test Rorschacha
Some psychologists protest against the use of the so-called Rorschach’s methods in drawing up opinions for the court. During the test, the subject is shown ink stains, and he talks about his associations. The test consists of 10 tables with ink blots – 5 gray-black, 2 gray-red and 3 color. On the basis of a subjective interpretation, the psychologist makes a diagnosis that may become the basis for a court judgment or, for example, for issuing a license to possess a firearm. – It happens that as a result of such research people are accused of sexually molesting children and even go to prison. Yet the Rorschach test is of little more value than reading tea leaves. Because it is impossible to judge a person’s personality based on his associations after seeing a few blots – says one of the organizers of the protest, a psychologist, founder of the Polish Skeptics Club, Dr. Tomasz Witkowski. The Rorschach test was created in 1921 by the Swiss psychoanalyst Hermann Rorschach. He himself did not take him as seriously as some psychologists treat him today. In Poland, the test is used by state institutions such as the Institute of Forensic Expertise in Kraków or Family Diagnostic and Consultation Centers. – After 90 years of this test’s existence, there is still no scientific evidence of its diagnostic effectiveness – emphasizes Dr. Witkowski. He adds that a pioneer in the field of psychometric research in psychology, prof. Anne Anastasi, claims that the only thing the inkblot test really reveals is the secret world of whoever interprets it. Also an outstanding social psychologist from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities prof. Dariusz Doliński does not see the usefulness of such methods in drawing up psychological opinions. – I know that for laymen, inferring a person’s personality on the basis of what he sees in ink stains can make a colossal impression. But people who have graduated from psychology should be aware that it is not really known what this test measures – if it measures anything at all, except originality of associations, ‘he says.
Psychology is science, not witchcraft
The protesters under the slogan Psychology is a science, not witchcraft, also undermine the usefulness of other projective tests in issuing court opinions. – For example, the Koch test consisting in the interpretation of a tree drawn by the examined tree. Depending on the thickness of the trunk, whether it has open branches, leaves, etc., the personality of the examined person is determined. The presence of a hollow is a traumatic experience. Meanwhile, if a child saw a squirrel jumping into a hollow the day before, he will certainly draw it, even though it was not supposed to be traumatized, says Witkowski. Therefore, the American Psychological Association recommended that the training programs of psychologists recommended for the 100st century should not include classes on projection methods. In Poland, if an attorney disputes the results of such tests, the court expert refers to the fact that the Psychological Test Laboratory of the Polish Psychological Association distributes them. – It must be clearly stated that psychology does not have such tools that would unambiguously allow the court to provide justification for the judgment. No psychologist is able to say XNUMX% whether someone has been harassed or whether he has molested himself – says Witkowski.
Projection tests without manipulation
Dr. Alicja Czerederecka, a long-time expert of the Institute of Forensic Expertise, member of the Commission for Recommendations for Experts, specialist in the Rorschach test, spoke out in defense of the Rorschach test. – Self-knowledge questionnaire tests often fail to meet the utility criterion because they are much more susceptible to manipulation. People examined for the purposes of the court are motivated to show themselves to the examiner – in accordance with the attitude adopted in the trial – in a better or worse light, if they simulate disorders. This attitude is not always fully conscious. Projection tests – on the contrary – are not very susceptible to manipulation – he emphasizes. Dr. Czeredecka also says that the adoption of the procedure for using projective tests is usually more difficult than in the case of questionnaire tests, and the Rorschach test requires a long period of learning and then practice. – Moreover, when preparing an individual diagnosis, including for the purposes of a court, a psychologist should use several different methods that complement and verify each other. In any case, it is necessary to obtain the consent of the respondents to submit to the proposed techniques, and in the event of disagreement, the use of substitutes – he explains.
Harmful psychoanalysis
– Psychology is infected with psychoanalysis and thus it ceases to be a science and becomes a religion – says psychologist Dr. Barbara Gujska from the Stop Manipulation Association. He talks about a dynamic psychoanalytical lobby operating in Poland, which, driven by the will to power resulting from the possession of secret knowledge, creates a powerful psycho-business. – A psychoanalytical approach, which is neither scientific nor empirical, cannot be used in forensic diagnostics, especially by state institutions – he adds. Prof. Bogdan Zawadzki, specialist in personality diagnostics and psychometry from the University of Warsaw. – The widespread use of projective tests results from the relatively high esteem still enjoyed by psychoanalysis among clinical, but not academic psychologists. Projection tests can also give the psychologist a sense of the ability to reach deep secrets and be resistant to manipulation on the part of the subject. But this impression is, in my opinion, deceptive – he believes.
Diagnostic errors in psychology
The president of the Polish Psychological Association, Dr. Małgorzata Toeplitz-Winiewska believes that a non-substantive discussion triggered by a group of psychologists may lead to the child being thrown out with the bathwater. – It is worth discussing the advantages and disadvantages of various projection techniques, not only the Rorschach method. The Rorschach method has a scientific basis deriving from the psychoanalytical concept and can be interpreted accordingly. The problem is in what situation and by whom it is used. A court opinion can never be based on an examination carried out using only one method. Only a psychologist skilled in this field may use the Rorschach test. The fact that there are diagnostic errors is due not so much to the shortcomings of the methods used, but to other methodological and interpretation errors committed by the researcher. Mistakes are also made using other research methods, not only projection techniques, he says. – The court can always check whether the expert opinion meets the basic methodological criteria. And the psychological opinion is only one of the evidence in the case – he adds. Dr. Toeplitz-Winiewska says that the Polish Psychological Association sees the problem of the functioning of research methods of different value in psychology, and therefore, together with the Committee of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, plans to review and review diagnostic tools in accordance with the recommendations of the European Federation of Psychological Societies (EFPA).
Protest against projection tests
The Skeptics Club published the entire test, along with typical answers, on its website http://sceptycy.org/. It is also a form of protest and a way to eliminate this diagnostic tool, as it is not recommended to use commonly available tests. The Canadian doctor James Heilman has already published the test in the English-language Wikipedia. – It is surprising that psychologists – academics join the protest action, which not only uses unscientific arguments, but also postulates publishing psychological methods, which is contrary to the psychologist’s ethical and professional code – condemns the action of Dr. Czeredeck. – As part of the “Psychology is science, not witchcraft” campaign, we decided to popularize test charts in order to protect potential recipients of this test. If you know that you will be diagnosed for forensic purposes (by an expert psychologist, at the Family Diagnostic and Consultation Center, etc.) please read these answers to avoid unnecessary problems! Or, you can refuse to undergo an examination using projection tests. The diagnostician is then obliged to use other methods. Be careful with your children, as they may be subjected to such tests in educational or rearing institutions, and due to the ignorance of the school psychologist, you may be deprived of parental rights, warn participants of the protest.