Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT) or Picture Story Writing Test is one of the Psychological Tests, which is conducted on the second day of the SSB Interview. TAT is considered to be the backbone of the psychological test. So, let’s discuss some important Tips and Tricks that will help you in performing better in your Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT) at SSB Interview.
After getting screened-in on the 1st day of your SSB Interview, you have to undergo a series of tests that are clubbed under Psychology tests, namely
- Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT)
- Word Association Test (WAT)
- Situation Reaction Test (SRT)
- Self-Description Test (SDT)
These Series of Tests helps in determining personality factors in three areas, namely
- Personal Adjustments
- Attitudes
- Interests
These points are assessed based on your age and background. Let’s get started.
Why Thematic Appreciation Test – TAT is conducted at SSB Interview?
Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT) is a projective method of assessing personality, which is considered the best method as it reveals a person’s innate personality by responding to some pictures or situations.
TAT was developed by Harvard University in the 1930s by American psychologist Henry A. Murray and lay psychoanalyst Christiana D. Morgan. It was developed because, Morgan found that people tend to interpret unclear and ambiguous situations according to their own past experiences and current motivations, which may result due to conscious or subconscious mind.
This Technique was later adopted by the SSB Selection procedure.
In TAT there is no single, definite or correct answer. There can be more than one correct answer or story.
Your responses to the picture in the form of the stories yield sufficient material with the help of which your temperamental makeup and emotional attitude can be built up. The purpose of the Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT) at the SSB Interview is to detect your thoughts woven around the object relationship. It also draws out on the surface your inner sentiments through your story.
What is the Procedure of TAT at SSB Interview?
In the Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT) of the SSB Interview, 11 hazy pictures/sketches or unstructured slides are shown to the candidate in quick succession. Each Slide is held to view only for 30 seconds. The candidate is then given 4 minutes to develop and write a story on what they saw and perceived in the picture. The lights remain switched off while the slide is being shown, when half a minute is over, they again come on.
The Last Slide or 12th Slide is left blank, in which you have to write any story which comes to your mind.
The test looks similar to that of the Picture Perception and Description Test (PPDT), which is conducted at the Screen-in Stage at SSB Interview, but both are different in many ways.
How to Write TAT?
Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT) looks similar to that of the Picture Perception and Description Test (PPDT), but the main difference is that the picture is much clearer than the PPDT and there is no discussion on the story after writing them.
The important topics around which your story will revolve are as below
- What led to that situation – give a brief background in 1-2 sentences
- What is happening in the current situation – describe the current events which are shown in the picture in 3-4 sentences
- What the characters are thinking and feeling – give a brief about all the major characters, mainly the hero or protagonist
- What will be the outcome of the event or how your story will end – briefly in 1-2 sentences
- Always have a main character who will be the protagonist or hero of the story
This main character will be showing all the qualities or personality traits that you want to show to the psychologist. This main character must be as natural as possible. It should also act as natural as possible and not like some superhero.
Types of Picture shown in TAT at SSB Interview
There are basically 2 types of images or pictures or sketches that are shown in TAT at the SSB Interview. They are
- Reactionary Story – the stories that require urgent resolution/solution or action to cater to them.
- Visionary Story –a generic photo without any action, in which you have to imagine a lot
What to write in the Blank Slide of TAT?
The Blank Slide in the TAT is the most important slide of the test, which gives an insight into your thoughts and attitude through your own story. This story requires the most imagination – which results in depicting your own past experiences or future goals.
You should have a fixed blank slide story, which should be written keeping all the points that are assessed by the Assessor. Most of these points are explained below.
Tips for Best TAT
As mentioned earlier, there is no perfect story of any picture or correct answer. But below points will help you in writing the best TAT
The DO’s
- Observe the picture or slide minutely with all the details and try to draw a mental sketch with all the important points.
- DO Not Ignore any Notes or Captions mentioned in the picture.
- There should be a single main character, and your story should be around this person
- The main character should depict all the behavioral and mental traits of an Officer
- Actions of characters, their background, and sequence are very important and observe them very carefully – which will help you in creating a sketch in your mind.
- You should assume that the picture depicts the present situation of the story. You have to travel mentally to the past and to the future – based on the present situation of the story and weave a story. Your story should revolve around the scene and the main character.
- The theme should be simple as it is desirable to avoid a complicated theme. Give common names to your characters.
- We have a very short time at your disposal, so we have to be quick and agile and should keep our story simple, clear, and concise.
- The Story must be cheerful, optimistic, and pleasing, and use such adjectives to describe your main character.
- Your story must be real with either solutions or real imagination. They are looking for some basic qualities in you and not for some Super Hero. Your actions should be logical.
- If the Story has some negative theme – like a person standing in a morgue or a person who has a knife stuck inside his chest – try to imagine the positive aspect of the scene. If required, do mention some non-positive thoughts – but only if the picture demands.
- Legible handwriting is a must, while good handwriting is always desirable.
The DONOT’s
- It is advisable to avoid negative and pessimistic and Anti-Social trends in your story.
- The power of expression, style, shaky language, broken sentences, and brief & Co-words is not desirable
- Do not write a long story
- It’s not the test of your English language or technical proficiency. So, traits of a real person with simple and lucid language.
- Do not overwrite or do cutting in your story, as it shows that you are not clear about your thoughts.
Sample TAT
As mentioned earlier, there is no correct story. I’m writing these stories to just give an example of how a story is written.
Story – 1
A Schoolgirl has been admitted to a nearby hospital. A hospital nurse was taking her out for a little stroll across the road in a park. The girl was a few steps behind the nurse. Suddenly there was a loud screeching of the brakes of a speeding truck. The truck had knocked down a middle-aged man. Before the nurse could realize the gravity of the dangerous situation, she discovered, to her horror that she herself was in danger of being run over by the truck. She hurriedly turned back to prevent the girl from crossing the road. Her own handbag was thrown off. The dead man lay headlong on the road. The policewomen’s faces reflect the shock they have seen.
Story – 2
Rani was on her way home from an evening tuition class, with her mother who was a nurse by profession. On her way, she saw that a truck was speeding on the road and had knocked down one middle-aged man. Her mother also came in the way and had a near-miss, as she jumped side-ways as soon as she saw the truck. The women traffic police, who were standing nearby were also shocked at this site. Rani was also shocked at the situation, but soon she called the ambulance and informed the details to the nearby police station about the accident. The man was saved as he reached the hospital on time. The police also arrested the truck driver.
Hope the article would have helped in get more insights into the Thematic Appreciation Test (TAT).
For any further queries or clarification or questions, do comment.
Sample TAT for Practice
