Acessibilidade / Reportar erro

Reflection about the clinical use of TAT in contemporaneity

The elaboration of psychological tests occurs in specific social cultural contexts and, therefore, these are not free from their influence. Considering the social changes that have occurred since the date of publication of the Thematic Apperception Test - TAT, it is plausible to question the conditions of this instrument used for learning the individual's subjectivity nowadays. In face of such considerations, this study aimed at offering evidence of the influence of the social-historical-cultural and artistic context over the definition of the TAT cards, and pondering about its use in contemporary reality. Our considerations, supported by clinical experience, suggest that these influences appear in the stories told by the subjects, which refer to the cards as images related to the past, with particular connotations. Considering that, a critical and cautious use of TAT is recommended for the analyses of the stories produced, especially in the interpretations related to the use of defense mechanisms of isolation and attachment to reality.

TAT; Psychological assessment; Psychoanalyses


Universidade de São Francisco, Programa de Pós-Graduação Stricto Sensu em Psicologia R. Waldemar César da Silveira, 105, Vl. Cura D'Ars (SWIFT), Campinas - São Paulo, CEP 13045-510, Telefone: (19)3779-3771 - Campinas - SP - Brazil
E-mail: revistapsico@usf.edu.br