This article discusses the MMPI’s development, applications, and versions.
It is widely used today in both clinical and non-clinical prefs.
Critics pointed out that the original sample group was inadequate.
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In response to these issues, the MMPI underwent a revision in the late 1980s.
Many questions were removed, reworded, or added.
Additionally, newvalidityscales were incorporated in the revised test.
The MMPI test should be used with other assessment tools as well.
A diagnosis should never be made solely on the results of the MMPI.
The MMPI can be administered individually or in groups and computerized versions are available as well.
Both the MMPI-2 and the MMPI-2-RF are designed for individuals age 18 years and older.
Because of this, most psychologists simply refer to each scale by number.
Here’s a brief overview of the clinical scales on the MMPI-2 and the MMPI-A.
Scale 1Hypochondriasis
This scale was designed to assess a neurotic concern over bodily functioning.
The items on this scale concern physical symptoms and well-being.
Very high scores may indicate depression, while moderate scores tend to reveal a general dissatisfaction with ones life.
Those who are well-educated and of a high social class tend to score higher on this scale.
Women also tend to score higher than men on this scale.
This scale can be thought of as a measure of disobedience andantisocial behavior.
High scorers tend to be more rebellious, while low scorers are more accepting of authority.
Despite the name of this scale, high scorers are usually diagnosed with apersonality disorderrather than apsychotic disorder.
Those who score high on this scale tend to have paranoid or psychotic symptoms.
Scale 8Schizophrenia
This scale was originally developed to identify individuals withschizophrenia.
Scale 0Social Introversion
This scale was developed later than the other nine scales.
It’s designed to assess a persons shyness and tendency to withdraw from social contacts and responsibilities.
The F Scale
This scale is used to detect attempts at overreporting.
This scale asks questions designed to determine if test-takers are contradicting themselves in their responses.
The MMPI manual recommends that any test with 30 or more unanswered questions should be declared invalid.
This section consists of 20 paired questions that are the opposite of each other.
High scores on this scale sometimes indicate that the respondent stopped paying attention and began answering questions randomly.
This scale can help establish the credibility of the test taker.
How Accurate Is the MMPI Test?
Alternatively, research localpsychologists and/or psychiatristsand other health professionals who can administer the test in person.
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