Global InformationBlacky pictures test information
The Blacky pictures test was a projective test, employing a series of twelve picture cards, used by psychoanalysts in mid-20th century America and elsewhere, to investigate the extent to which children's personalities were shaped by Freudian psychosexual development.
The test was created by Gerald S. Blum in 1947,[1] who was later Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan.[2] The drawings depicted a family of cartoon dogs in normal situations which could be related to psychoanalytic theory. The main character, "Blacky", was accompanied by a sibling Tippy, and by a mother and father. Blacky's gender was determined by the gender of the test subject.
Children were asked to make up a story, based in the drawings in the pictures, and the content of their responses, when analysed, was thought to indicate the extent of Freudian personality traits, such as an anal personality, castration anxiety or penis envy.
The Blacky Pictures Test's worth as a source of useful data was questioned by psychologists, among them Hans Eysenck, and they since have fallen out of use.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
taulbeewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Gerald S. Blum". University of Michigan. 2011. Archived from the original on 18 January 2018. Retrieved 9 February 2013.