History

The Society for Personality Assessment (SPA) was founded in Essex County, New Jersey by Bruno Klopfer (right) and a group of his students. Over the years the Society expanded to include a full spectrum of techniques including the Rorschach inkblots, picture-based story telling tests, self-report personality inventories, and structured interviews. Initially incorporated as the Rorschach Institute, Inc. in 1938, the Society adopted its current name in 1971 to reflect our interest in the entire spectrum of issues present in contemporary personality assessment and to focus the Society as a special interest group concerned with promoting the exchange of ideas and information about personality assessment in research and in practice. Throughout its history, SPA has maintained a commitment to the belief that both individual growth and scientific advance are best fostered by lively evidence-based debate among proponents of a wide variety of methods and theories in a context of warm personal relationships.

For more information about our history, please read Dr. Irving B. Weiner's 2018 article, Society for Personality Assessment/Journal of Personality Assessment: A History.