The topic of ego development developed when psychoanalysis did not fulfill all the initial hopes during its early period of prominence. Clinicians--psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and counselors--realized that they needed to know more than their patients' or clients' psychopathology or normalcy and their psychosexual behavior and drives. The method for scoring sentence completions presented in this manual was originally developed for a study of women and adolescent girls. By the time it was first published in 1970, however, the method had already come into use in studies of men and boys. Since then, it has been used with widely varying samples, and the test has been translated into several other languages. This wide adoption testifies to the need for such a test. The present version of the manual incorporates three major improvements: * it is based on data from, and is intended for use with, both males and females, * its format is easier to use, and * the examples cited reflect current public attitudes. The format of the scoring manual for the Sentence Completion Test (SCT) is radically changed from the original, making it easier to find the correct rating for a response. The rating scale itself is kept simple and the basic concept of ego development is the same. A tutorial is included to assist in calculating the Total Protocol Ratings (TPRs). ALTERNATIVE BLURB!!! The Washington University Sentence Completion Test, which was developed by Jane Loevinger, is a free-response, semi-projective instrument for the assessment of ego development. The first manual for administering and scoring the test was published in 1970. In addition to its widespread use in the United States, it has also been adopted for use in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan, India, and South Africa. The WUSCT has been used for research in the fields of adolescent personality development, moral development, infancy and parenting, family and gender studies, multiculturalism, religion, psychopathology and psychotherapy, vocational studies, and social and organizational psychology. It is most frequently used by researchers and practitioners in psychology, counseling, social work, and education. This book represents a revised edition of the WUSCT scoring manual, including all items in the 1981 forms, which were revised for use with both men and women. The content reflects current social attitudes, which have changed on some topics since the publication of the original 1970 manual. Although there have been minor changes in terminology, the conception of ego development is unchanged, and the stages of the construct are essentially the same. The format of the scoring manual, however, has been radically changed for ease of use in rating responses. (The rating scale itself, which is the same for all items, is kept simple.) A tutorial is included to assist in calculating the Total Protocol Ratings.

This book describes the evolution of the Washington University Sentence Completion Test (SCT), a major measure of ego development, from an intuitive rating scale to an empirically derived reliable and valid personality test. The authors recount the complete history of the SCT, which begins with the Family Problems Scale, an objective test of mothers' attitudes. Work with that test led to a concept of ego development, testable by the SCT, which was elaborated and refined in further work. The book discusses uses of the SCT in other languages and other cultures, offers suggestions for giving the SCT in translation, and presents computer programs for handling SCT responses. Data on reliability and validity of the SCT are brought up to date. These include evidence of the equivalence of the male and female forms of the current version, Form 81, and the equivalence of the two halves of Form 81, each usable as a short form. Rules for obtaining total protocol ratings for 18-item as well as 36-item forms are given. Frequently used forms of the SCT, including a new form for adolescents and children over eight years old, are presented.

Explores the nature and manifestations of defense mechanisms--repression, displacement, denial, etc. Traces ego defense theory and research from Freud's initial conceptualization through recent work in object-relations theory and other psychoanalytically-oriented approaches. Renowned contributors provide the rationale for their measurement techniques, describe them in detail, offer reliability and validity data along with illustrations of usefulness.

Jane Loevinger's innovative research methodology, psychometric rigor, and theoretical scope have attracted the attention of numerous scholars and researchers. Empirical investigations employing Loevinger's Washington University Sentence Completion Test of ego development (WUSCT) have appeared with increasing frequency and total more than 300 studies. Following the publication of the first comprehensive revision of the scoring manual for the WUSCT, this volume reflects on the strengths and limitations of Loevinger's developmental model. It is divided into sections that correspond with four broad questions that can be raised about Loevinger's developmental model: * What is its scope and intellectual tradition? * What evidence is there for construct validity? * What is its relationship to other social-developmental models? * What is its clinical relevance to Loevinger's model of ego development? This four-part grouping provides a framework for effectively organizing the present material, and frequently, the questions raised in one section are addressed in other sections as well. In the concluding chapter, Loevinger addresses some of the ideas that are proposed by the various authors. She also presents the origin of the ego development concept by recounting its history.

Cutting-edge volume devoted to optimal adult development. Postconventional stages of personality development involve growth well beyond the average, and have become a rapidly growing subject of research not only in developmental psychology circles but also in areas such as executive leadership development. This book is the first to bring together many of the major researchers in the field, showcasing diverse perspectives ranging from the spiritual to the corporate. The contributors present research on essential questions about the existence and prevalence of high levels of personal growth, whether such achievement is correlated with other types of psychological growth, whether high levels of growth actually indicate happiness, what kinds of people exhibit these higher levels of development, how they may have developed this expanded perspective, and the characteristics of their viewpoints, abilities, and preoccupations. For anyone interested in Ken Wilber’s integral psychology, as well as those in executive coaching, this volume is an invaluable resource and will be a standard reference for years to come. “This is an excellent resource for those interested in psychometrics collections and in transpersonal/humanistic psychology and life-span development A solid companion to other titles in the ‘SUNY Series in Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology.’” — CHOICE This is a convention-breaking book that makes a much-needed contribution to the field. Its varied scholarly chapters explore the far reaches of human growth and potential—including the oft-neglected dimension of personality development. Chapters are written by veteran researchers and exemplars in adult development studies. Included are wonderfully creative theoretical explorations on personality development as well as original contributions that push the envelope of spiritual and religious development to unprecedented lengths. — Melvin E. Miller, coeditor of Self and No-Self: Continuing the Dialogue between Buddhism and Psychotherapy “This book is the best place to go for current views on late-stage ego-development theory, practice, and measurement. It clarifies the promise and importance of these methods and models that stem from Loevinger (and H. S. Sullivan), casting an eye over a fascinating array of topics. But the book also explores the limitations and blind spots inherent in these methods. This is an excellent contribution to scholarly literature about the further reaches of human potential.” — Zachary Stein, Harvard University

Ego Development and Psychopathology presents an original theoretical underpinning for classification and interpretation of the major mental disorders, one based largely on the author's clinical experience. Ausubel's central thesis is that the most significant and crucial factors predisposing persons to mental disorders are critical developmental defects that arise at vital transitional phases of ego development. He sees both normal and pathological personality functioning as most cogently explained in terms of an individual's ego structure at a given point in the life cycle. Ausubel relates his developmental theory to the phenomenology and related clinical problems of psychiatric diagnosis. He classifies mental disorders in terms of their developmental history. Such factors, in his opinion, offer the most precise delineation of etiological, functional, and phenomenological similarities and differences among the various psychiatric syndromes. He provides an overview of ego development, as well as major variants of the norm. He also discusses development of conscience and moral values, as well as psychopathological considerations that follow from deficiencies, defects, failure, and distortions in ego development. He examines at length classification of mental disorders, such as anxiety states, psychotic depression and mania, schizophrenia, autism, antisocial and narcissistic personality disorders, and defense mechanisms. Ausubel is careful to point out that ego development is not the only significant determinant of normal and aberrant personality. Genetic predispositions, situational stress, and sociocultural factors must always be taken into consideration since mental disorder is always a product of multiple causality. However, he believes ego development is by far the most critical factor, and hence offers the most for classification of mental illness. This intriguing study will be of interest to professionals as well as educated and concerned practitioners in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, child psychotherapy, and social work.