Attempts to find culture-free or culture fair instruments have been a major problem for Eurocentric psychology.Not only do I have a beef with psychometric testing in this regard,but also with those so called projective tests like the TAT and that inkblot test (Rorshach.It does appear that these projective tests do not require literacy and are immune from cultural and ethnic aspects.After all an inkblot is the same in India,Afghanistan,Honduras,North Korea,Iran, and the U.S-but not so fast.Apart from the suspiciousness of the experimenter's intent.there is also the problem of culture's influence on interpretation: for examples,certain cards are seen as bats,butterflies,or moths and would indicate some conditioning to Eurocentric variables,There are popular responses associated with certain cards.But popular responses in Toromto might not the same as in Islamabad. And if we are to look at the so-called color influenced responses, non-visual cultures may not be able to differentiate.Westercultures tend to be very visual. And I can go on and on.
MIchael Sylvester.PhD Daytona Beach,Florida --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly ([email protected])
