Incremental Validity of the MMPI-2 Content Scales in a Psychiatric Sample

Abstract

The current study replicated and expanded previous investigations that focused on the incremental contribution of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) content scales. The MMPI-2 and the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) were administered to 597 adult psychiatric patients (289 females, 308 males) receiving inpatient treatment. In addition, clinical psychologists provided ratings on each of these patients with the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) and the Global Assessment Scale (GAS). A series of hierarchical stepwise multiple regression analyses were conducted with MMPI-2 basic and content scales as the independent variables and SCL-90-R, BPRS, and GAS variables as the dependent criteria. Similar to Findings by Ben-Porath, McCully, and Almagor, MMPI-2 content scales were shown to add incrementally to the prediction of variance on self-report measures; the current study also revealed significant relationships to clinician-rater criteria. Implications of the present findings for test interpretation procedures and future research are presented and discussed.