Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) is a widely utilized psychological assessment tool designed to evaluate personality traits and psychopathology. Developed in the late 1930s and published in 1943, the MMPI was created by psychologists Starke R. Hathaway and J. C. McKinley primarily for assessing adult psychiatric patients. Its unique multiphasic approach allows for a comprehensive evaluation of various psychological conditions in a single test administration. The inventory employs an empirical method for selecting test items, ensuring that questions effectively distinguish between healthy individuals and those with psychological disorders.
Over the years, the MMPI has undergone significant updates, leading to the publication of the MMPI-2 in 1989 and the more recent MMPI-3 in 2020, which features a broader normative sample and new assessment areas. The MMPI-3 consists of 335 self-descriptive statements that respondents answer as "true" or "false," generating a profile that includes validity measures and clinical scales for interpreting psychological conditions. While primarily utilized in clinical settings, the MMPI can also be applied in job candidate screenings to assess personality "fit." Its evolving nature reflects a commitment to addressing contemporary psychological issues while maintaining relevance for diverse populations.
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
- DATE: 1943 forward
- TYPE OF PSYCHOLOGY: Personality; psychopathology
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory is the most widely used and researched personality assessment instrument in clinical practice. It is primarily used to aid in the diagnosis and assessment of the major psychological disorders.
Introduction
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI/MMPI-2) was developed during the late 1930s, reaching publication in 1943. The authors of the test were Starke R. Hathaway, a psychologist, and J. C. McKinley, a physician to whom Hathaway reported at the University of Minnesota Hospitals. The test was originally developed to aid in the assessment of adult psychiatric patients, both to describe the type and severity of their disturbance and to measure patient change over time. It quickly grew in popularity to become the most widely used and researched psychological test ever published.
Three characteristics distinguished the MMPI from the psychological tests of the 1930s. First, it was developed as a broadband, multiphasic test assessing multiple personality attributes in a single administration. Most personality tests up to that time were narrower in their focus. Second, this was the first personality test to use an empirical method of selecting test questions. This procedure involved selecting test items that differentiated between persons making up an average population and persons in the clinical group of interest (such as individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia, depression, or other psychiatric disorders) at a statistically significant level. Third, the MMPI incorporated validity scales, or measures of test-taking attitude, that identified tendencies to either underreport or overreport psychopathology.
Restandardization
A significant limitation of the original MMPI was its normative sample, or the reference group used to represent the average population (in contrast to the clinical groups). The original regular reference group consisted primarily of a rural, all-White, eighth grade-educated population who were visiting patients at the University of Minnesota Hospital. Over time, several criticisms were made that this group, predominantly Scandinavian in origin, needed to be more representative of the broader United States population. Other problems with the MMPI also developed, including outdated test item content, poorly worded items, or item content objectionable to contemporary test takers (for instance, questions regarding religious beliefs or bodily functions). In response to such concerns, an MMPI restandardization project was begun in 1982, culminating in the publication of the MMPI-2 in 1989. Comparison of the restandardized standard sample to 1990 census data by ethnicity, age, and education indicated that the new normative group was significantly more representative of the United States population than were the original norms, except that well-educated persons were overrepresented. The MMPI-2 also incorporated additional validity measures and newly developed scales reflecting contemporary clinical problems. In 2020, the MMPI-3 was published with updated normative populations and revised questions. New assessment areas and revised scaling systems were also added.
Description of the Test
The MMPI-3 is an objectively scored, standardized questionnaire comprising 335 self-descriptive statements answered as “true” or “false.” Responses can be hand- or computer-scored and summarized on a profile sheet. Interpretation is based on the scales' configuration on the profile sheet and demographic variables characterizing the test-taker. The basic profile sheet comprises eight validity measures and ten restructured clinical scales. Fifteen additional “content” scales and potentially hundreds of supplementary and research scales can also be scored. The validity scales measure test-taking attitudes, including such characteristics as consistencies in response patterns and tendencies to exaggerate or minimize psychological problems. The clinical scales are labeled both by a number and with traditional psychiatric diagnostic labels such as depression, paranoia, and schizophrenia. Outdated labels such as “psychasthenia” or “hysteria” have been removed from the test. In addition, the scales do not effectively differentiate diagnostic groups (for instance, an elevation on the paranoia scale is not exclusive to persons with a paranoia diagnosis). It has thus become standard practice to refer to profiles by characteristic scale numbers (such as a “49” profile) and to interpret them according to relevant research rather than by scale labels. The fifteen content scales reflect the client’s endorsement of test items whose content is evident and describes particular problems such as anxiety, health concerns, or family problems. The many supplementary scales measure a wide range of concerns, ranging from addiction proneness to post-traumatic stress disorder to marital distress. The MMPI-3 is appropriate for use only with those eighteen years and older. A shorter version of the test, the MMPI-A, is available for fourteen- to eighteen-year-old adolescents.
Bibliography
Ben-Porath, Yossef S. Interpreting the MMPI-2-RF. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 2012.
Ben-Porath, Yossef S., and Martin Sellbom. "MMPI-3." University of Minnesota Press, www.upress.umn.edu/test-division/mmpi-3. Accessed 6 Oct. 2024.
Butcher, James N., editor. Basic Sources on the MMPI-2. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 2000.
Butcher, James N., editor. International Adaptations of the MMPI-2. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 1996.
Butcher, James N., and Carolyn L. Williams. "Personality Assessment with the MMPI-2: Historical Roots, Internatinoal Adaptations, and Current Challenges." Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being, vol. 1, no. 1, 2009, pp. 105–35.
Butcher, James N., and John R. Graham. Development and Use of the MMPI-2 Content Scales. 3rd ed., Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 2007.
Butcher, James N., Giselle A. Hass, Roger L. Greene, and Linda D. Nelson. Using the MMPI-2 in Forensic Assessment. Arlington: Amer. Psychological Assn., 2015.
Caldwell, Alex B. "What Do the MMPI Scales Fundamentally Measure? Some Hypotheses." Journal of Personality Assessment, vol. 76, no. 1, 2001, pp. 1–17.
Carducci, Bernardo J. Psychology of Personality: Viewpoints, Research, and Applications. 3rd ed., Hoboken: Wiley, 2015.
Cherry, Kendra. "The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) Test." Verywell Mind, 15 July 2024, www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-minnesota-multiphasic-personality-inventory-2795582. Accessed 6 Oct. 2024.
Dahlstrom, W. G., D. Lachar, and L. W. Dahlstrom. MMPI Patterns of American Minorities. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 1986.
Friedman, Alan F., P. Kevin Bolinskey, Richard W. Levak, and David S. Nichols. Psychological Assessment with the MMPI-2. 3rd ed., New York: Routledge, 2015.
Legg, Timothy J., and Rebecca Joy Stanborough. "What to Know About the MMPI Test." Healthline, 20 Apr. 2020, www.healthline.com/health/mmpi-test. Accessed 6 Oct. 2024.