Gerontological Apperception Test

The Gerontological Apperception Test, developed by Wolk and Wolk in 1971, is a projective test published by Behavioral Publications that is designed to compensate for the reputed weakness of many apperceptive tests in the assessment of older adults. Because at least one older adult is depicted in a situation frequently encountered by the aged, identification with the test stimuli is assumed to be evocative of responses. This enhances an understanding of the aged personality and his or her reactions to common situations.

Specifically, the Gerontological Apperception Test consists of a set of 14 achromatic cards, each card reflecting a situation with which older adults could identify. The pictures are designed to elicit more relevant themes such as isolation, loss of physical mobility/sexuality, dependency, and ageism. There is no standard set of cards to be administered. Cards are selected for administration based on suspected personal issues and concerns of each individual subject. At the time of the initial publication of the Gerontological Apperception Test, there was not a standard scoring procedure. Protocols were typically analyzed for the presence of themes.

The Gerontological Apperception Test has been criticized on the bases of (a) the negative tone of the pictures (all achromatic), (b) the stereotypic presentation of older people on the cards, and (c) no accepted scoring system that would permit the development of norms to guide clinical use. However, a revised and more differentiated scoring system for the Gerontological Apperception Test was developed by Hayslip and his colleagues.

The literature on the Gerontological Apperception Test is not extensive, nor does the literature demonstrate that the test is more successful than the Thematic Apperception Test in eliciting relevant themes from older adults. Therefore, although the test shows promise for clinical use with older adults, more research is required before the clinical utility of the Gerontological Apperception Test has been demonstrated effectively.