Construction and Initial Psychometric Validation of the Morana Scale – A Multidimensional Projective Diagnostic Tool for Assessing the Risk of Destructiveness in a Sample of Individuals Engaged in Mental Health Discourse, Developed Using Artificial Intelligence

Background: Psychoanalytic concepts of destructiveness point to its deep, unconscious roots, related to primal emotional-motivational mechanisms. Traditional, psychiatric models of suicidal risk assessment focus on classic risk factors, limiting diagnostic and interventional options. This study verifies the neuropsychoanalytic basis of destructive tendencies, integrating the mechanisms of sublimation and evolutionary motivational systems, and redefining their role in the process of destruction. Material and methods: 480 illustrations were generated using artificial intelligence, evaluated by judges competent for interpretative accuracy. The final set was used in a projection task conducted online on a sample of 204 respondents, who also completed the sociodemographic part of the survey. Analyses included factorial exploration of the structure of the tool, assessment of psychometric properties (Cronbach α, ROC, AUC), logistic regression and analysis of intergroup differences. Results: Factor analysis identified eight subscales, six of which correspond to Panksepp's emotional systems, suggesting their subcortical basis. The other two – the pursuit of destruction and its sublimation – go beyond natural evolutionary mechanisms. The desire for destruction was best explained by depression and psychological pain (OR=1.385, p<0.001, AUC=0.783), aggression and impulsivity (OR=1.676, p<0.001, AUC=0.715), and anxiety and a sense of threat (OR=1.554, p<0.001, AUC=0.618). Significant predictors of sublimation of destruction were interest and curiosity (OR=3.152, p<0.001, AUC =0.900), closeness and love (OR=3.432, p<0.001, AUC =0.836), and pleasure and fun (OR=3.081, p<0.001, AUC=0.793). Analyses of intergroup differences showed a higher level of destructiveness in people receiving psychological and psychiatric help, with a previous diagnosis and learning compared to working people (p<0.05). Conclusions: The results indicate that the tool is characterized by high reliability (Cronbach's α>0.87) and diagnostic validity (ROC>0.7), which confirms its potential usefulness in the assessment of destructive and sublimation tendencies and in accordance with the neuropsychoanalytic approach to the theory of drives. Subsequent studies will focus on assessing the external validity of the tool and its application in clinical practice.