Bender-Gestalt Test
| Bender-Gestalt Test | |
|---|---|
| Medical diagnostics | |
| ICD-9-CM | 94.02 |
| MeSH | D001538 |
The Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test (abbreviated as Bender-Gestalt test) is a psychological test used by mental health practitioners that assesses visual-motor functioning, developmental disorders, and neurological impairments in children ages 3 and older and adults. The test consists of nine index cards picturing different geometric designs. The cards are presented individually and test subjects are asked to redraw each one from memory before the next card is shown. Test results are scored based on the accuracy and organization of the reproductions.
The Bender-Gestalt test was originally developed in 1938 by child psychiatrist Lauretta Bender. Additional versions were developed by other later practitioners, although adaptations designed as projective tests have been heavily criticized in the clinical literature due to their lack of psychometric validity. All versions follow the same general format, but differ in how results are evaluated and scored.
The first version of the Bender-Gestalt test was developed in 1938 by child neuropsychiatrist Lauretta Bender. The original test consists of nine index cards with different figures on each card. The subject is shown each figure and asked to copy it onto a piece of blank paper. The test typically takes 7–10 minutes, after which the results are scored based on accuracy and organization. It can be administered on both children and adults ages three and older.
Bender first described her Visual Motor Gestalt Test in an 1938 monograph entitled: A Visual Motor Gestalt Test and Its Clinical Use. The figures were derived from the work of the Gestalt psychologist Max Wertheimer. It ranked in the top five most popular psychological tests used by mental health practitioners, particularly school psychologists, from the 1960s until the early 1990s when participation in the required training began to decline. It measures perceptual motor skills, perceptual motor development, and gives an indication of neurological deficits.
Additional versions were developed by later practitioners, although adaptations designed as projective tests have been heavily criticized in the clinical literature due to their lack of psychometric validity. All versions follow the same general format, but differ in how results are evaluated and scored.
The impetus for the clinical use of the Bender Gestalt came in the late 1930s when Max L. Hutt, an Instructor at the Educational Clinic of City College of New York became interested in developing a nonverbal projective personality test. The advantages of such an instrument would eliminate problems with language as well as prevent the test subjects from consciously screening their responses and the reproduction of the nine Bender Test Figures by test subjects could be accomplished in as little as ten minutes.
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