Expanding the Interpretive Potential of Eye Tracking for the Rorschach: Replication and Extension of the Findings of Ales et al. (2020)

Abstract

The present study was undertaken to determine if the findings of Ales et al. (2020) could be replicated and extended, especially in light of the replication crisis in psychology and the social sciences. Ales et al. (2020) found that measures from the engagement and cognitive processing domain of the Rorschach performance assessment system (R-PAS) were associated with Eye Tracking variables that reflect cognitive engagement and effort. Notably, Complexity was associated with the number of fixations participants made while scanning the blots and Vg% was inversely associated with a participant’s average fixation durations. The present study utilized a non-clinical sample of 60 adult participants. The basic findings of Ales et al. (2020) were replicated. In addition, we found that Complexity and Vg% are associated with additional Eye Tracking variables not utilized in the original study. The current findings bolster and extend the interpretation of Ales et al. (2020), indicating that higher levels of Complexity are also associated with scanning more regions of the blot overall, albeit at a slower rate. Similar effect size values were observed in the two different cultural contexts. Higher levels of Vg% are associated with measures indicating shallower and more superficial search strategies, consistent with the interpretation of Vg% as indicative of a vague, impressionistic, and unsophisticated cognitive style.