Final answer:
Showing a picture of an athlete arguing with an official and asking someone to write about it is an example of a projective test. These tests aim to uncover unconscious feelings, impulses, and desires by having individuals project their own thoughts onto ambiguous stimuli.
Step-by-step explanation:
The exercise of showing a person a picture of an athlete arguing with an official and asking them to write about what is happening is an example of a projective test. This type of test requires the individual to project their own feelings, impulses, or desires onto ambiguous stimuli, such as pictures, in order to uncover underlying unconscious processes.
Projective tests are used to assess aspects of personality that are not easily accessible through more conscious, self-report inventories. They seek to reveal a person's unconscious desires, fears, and struggles through the stories they create or the interpretations they give to ambiguous images or scenarios.
Projective testing differs from objective testing, which relies on structured, clear-cut formats like multiple-choice questions or numbered scales. The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), the Rorschach Inkblot Test, and the Rotter Incomplete Sentence Blank (RISB) are examples of projective tests. Unlike the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) or the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), which are self-report inventories designed to assess personality traits and types, projective tests provide a more nuanced exploration of an individual's personality, without fixed choices or scales.