You do not currently have permission to view the full text for this document. Please sign in to an account with an active subscription or contact support.
Psychological testing requires that patients actively display their ego capacities to function efficiently, accurately, and in relation to reality. The different tests are designed to elicit particular ego functions in a standard situation. Thus, for example, the Rorschach test requires the patient to operate under pressures to integrate imagination and perception, while the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) requires that the patient exclude personalized associations and attend to consensually held values and concepts. The unvarying nature of the tasks and the uniformity of the test situation make it possible to establish norms against which a particular patient's behavior may be judged. The psychologist is therefore proficient in the diagnosis of subtle as well as of overt thought disorders. In the clinical interview, patients tell their own stories. This elicits individuals' consciously held views of themselves and their worlds. There is a large area in which either diagnostic method will be effective. The interview seems more useful than psychological testing for assessing superego functions and the patient's attitudes toward illness and treatment.