The nature of the instrument, with true and false answers and patterns that are readily identifiable, has prompted the development of books to supply interpretations of the results. The interpretations are given in the form of descriptive statements that tend to be true of clients whose scores yield certain profiles. When used by a skilled and experienced psychologist, the MMPI is a powerful instrument. The psychologist administering and interpreting the MMPI must pay attention to all relevant factors, including age, sex, education, social class, religious background, place of residence, and other historical data (Karp and Karp, 2009). The criterion groups for this test were selected from patients at the University of Minnesota hospitals (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, n.d.).
The MMPI has ten clinical scales and three validity scales in addition to many supplementary scales. It has been found to be difficult to consistently bias the MMPI because of the complexity and lack of transparency in the instrument. Researchers have found though, that it is common for people to score high on more than one scale at the same time and that interpretation using two or more scales tend to be more accurate and, more useful. The MMPI is open to faking because of the transparency of some of the items. That is why it contains three validity scales that are designed to help the psychologist identify abnormal response sets that might suggest faking good or faking bad (Karp and Karp, 2009).
The validity of the MMPI seems to vary with the population that is being examined. The inventory has...
The inventory seemingly is less valid with groups that diverge from this, such as those from different races or cultures. "Test-retest reliabilities reported in the manual range from the .50s to the low .90s. Certain scales, such as Scale 2, are quite variable over time; whereas other scales supposedly more "characterological" such as Scale 1, have much higher test-retest reliabilities" (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, n.d.).
The MMPI is a very useful test as long as it is used under the right circumstances and administered and interpreted by the appropriate personnel. It is very useful in testing what it was designed to test and is relatively cost effective to administer. These things make it a favorite among professionals and explain why it has been around for as long as it has.
References
Karp, Cheryl L. And Karp, Leonard. (2009). MMPI: Questions to Ask. Retrieved June 29, 2009,
from Web site: http://www.falseallegations.com/mmpi-bw.htm
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. (n.d.). Retrieved June 29, 2009, from Web site:
http://www.cps.nova.edu/~cpphelp/MMPI.html
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. (2007). Retrieved June 29, 2009, from Encyclopedia
of Mental Disorders Web site: http://www.minddisorders.com/Kau-Nu/Minnesota-Multiphasic-Personality-Inventory.html
