MOTELLE N.I 202100554 NRS2304 PERSONALITY ASSESSMENT: SELF-REPORT TESTS OBJECTIVES Define self-report inventory Discuss different types of self-report test Discuss various versions of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) Describe MMPI validity scales and 10 clinical scales used for mental health conditions identification. Advantages and disadvantages of self-report test SELF-REPORT TEST/ SELF-REPORT INVENTORY A self-report inventory is a type of psychological test often used in personality assessment. This type of test is often presented in a paper and pencil format or may even be administered on a computer. It presents a number of questions or statements that may or may not describe certain qualities/characteristics of the test subject. It is also defined as a method of personality assessment whereby one gathers data about people by asking them questions about a sample of their behavior. Self-report inventory questionnaires are often seen in doctor’s offices, in online personality tests, in market research surveys and even the fun quizzes one may have seen often shared Facebook, all these are examples of self-report inventories. These surveys do serve much more serious goals in collecting data and helping to identify potential problems, they can also be used to look at one’s current, past and possible behaviors in hypothetical situations. A self -report test looks something like this; 3 Examples of self-report test Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) It serves as one of the best examples of self-report measures that is frequently used in personality assessment. It is defined as a widely used self-report test that identifies people with psychological difficulties and is designed to predict some of the everyday behaviors of an individual such as sexual attitudes, social attitudes, relationships as well as religious attitudes. MMPI is a clinical assessment tool used by health professionals to help diagnose mental health disorders. For some time now, it has been used in psychology clinics, hospitals, correctional facilities and pre-employment screenings and it serves as one of the most researched psychological tests in existence. Types of MMPI 1. MMPI-2 -Consists of 567 true/false questions about issues involving mood, opinions, physical and psychological health and takes 60-90 mins to complete. 2. MMPI-2-RF (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form) -Has 338 true/false questions and takes 35-50 minutes to complete, it is an alternative to MMPI-2. 3. MMPI-A (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent) -It is geared towards adolescents aged 14-18 years and has 478 questions which take 1hr to complete. 4. MMPI-A-RF (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory Adolescent Restructured Form) -The shortest test with just 241 questions that take 25-45 mins to complete. 5. MMPI-3 -It is the latest version of MMPI with 335 questions which take 25-50 mins to answer and it is available in English, Spanish and French. The 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire This example is developed by Raymond Cattell to assess individuals based on his trait theory of personality, it is used to generate personality profile of an individual and to evaluate employees as well as to help people select a career. California Personality Inventory It is based on the MMPI from which almost half of the questions are drawn and is designed to measure characteristics such as self-control, empathy and independence. Advantages of self-report inventories Serve as a good resort when large number of tests need to be administered in relatively short space of time. Most can be completed very quickly Less expensive for researchers faced with tight budgets Results are generally reliable and valid than projective tests Disadvantages of self-report tests People are able to exercise deception while taking self-report tests Some tests are very long, for example, the MMPI takes about 3hrs to complete and this can result in some participants losing interest and not answering accurately. Some respondents may try to hide their own feelings, thoughts and attitudes. The focus of this presentation will be mostly on the MMPI test because it is the widely used selfreport inventory example. MMPI In this test, there are no right or wrong answers instead, the interpretation of results is based on 10 clinical scales. It should be administered, scored and interpreted by a professional, preferably a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist who has received special training in MPPI use. The test involves completing a number of questions that correspond to different scales that correspond to certain mental health conditions. Explicitly, MMPI-A and MMPI-2 use the following 10 clinical scales to indicate different psychological conditions. Scale 1-Hypochondriasis: This scale was designed to asses a neurotic concern over bodily functioning and the items on this scale concern physical symptoms and well-being. It was originally developed to identify people displaying the symptoms of hypochondria. Scale 2-Depression: This scale was developed to identify depression which is characterized by poor morale, lack of hope in the future and general dissatisfaction with one’s own life situation. Very high scores may indicate depression while moderate scores may just reveal a general dissatisfaction with one’s life. Scale 3-Hysteria: This scale is used to identify people who display hysteria or physical complaints in stressful situations. Well educated people, those of high social class more especially women tend to score higher than men on this scale. Scale 4-Psychopathic Deviate: Used as a measure of disobedience, antisocial behavior, social deviation and lack of acceptance. It helps to identify psychopathic individuals. High scorers of this scale tend to be more rebellious while low scorers are more accepting of the authority and more often high scorers are diagnosed with a personality disorder rather than a psychotic disorder. Scale 5-Masculinity-Feminity: Originally developed to identify homosexual tendencies but was ineffective therefore it is used today, to identify individuals with stereotypical male and female gender roles. Scale 6-Paranoia: Designed to identify people with paranoid symptoms such as suspiciousness, feelings of persecution, excessive sensitivity and rigid attitudes. High scorers on this scale tend to have psychotic symptoms. Scale 7-Psychasthenia: Although this label is no longer used today, it was formerly used to measure excessive doubts, compulsions, obsessions and unreasonable fears. Scale 8-Schizophrenia: Used to identify people with schizophrenia and it reflects a wide variety of symptoms including bizarre thought processes, strange perceptions, poor familial relationships, lack of deep interests, difficulties in concentration, disturbing questions of self-worth, self -identity and sexual difficulties. Scale 9-Hypomania: designed to identify individuals with hypomania characterized by elevated mood, hallucinations, delusions, accelerated speech and motor activity and brief periods of depression. Scale 0-Social Introversion: this scale is developed to asses a person’s shyness and tendency to withdraw from social contacts as well as responsibilities. Some test takers may not be completely honest as some may try to appear good by making himself what he is not, so the MMPI test uses validity scales of different sorts to help in assessing the accuracy of each individual’s answers. Below are examples of those validity scales; The L scale It is also known as the lie scale and was developed to detect attempts by individuals to present themselves in the most positive way possible. The F Scale This scale is used to detect people who attempt to overreport, who try to appear worse than they really are. The K Scale It is also referred to as the defensive scale and is used to detect people who try to present oneself in the best possible way by underreporting. People may underreport because of being worried that they may be judged or denying that they have problems. The ? Scale It is also known as the cannot say scale and it assesses the number of items that are left unanswered. According to the MMPI manual, any test with 30 or more unanswered questions should be regarded as invalid. When making diagnoses, health professional should take into account things such as physical and psychological examination, a thorough health history, lab tests to rule out substance use and other illnesses that may produce symptoms of mental health conditions. SUMMARY Self- report test is a personality assessment method whereby one gathers data about people by asking them questions about a sample of their behavior and it is not only used to assess personality but to help doctors and therapists screen for and diagnose mental health conditions. There exist different types of self-report inventory namely the MMPI, the 16 personality factor questionnaire and the California personality inventory. The MMPI stands out to be the most widely used type and it also has different types being the MMPI-2, MMPI-A, MMPI-3, MMPI-2-RF, and MMPI-A-RF. In addition, since people are not always honest for their own reasons, different validity scales were designed to help assess the accuracy of the test takers’ responses in MMPI test and they are, to mention a few, the L Scale, the F Scale, the K scale as well as the cannot say scale (the ? scale). The MMPI test also has 10 clinical scales used not for validating answers but for identifying certain mental health conditions and those are, hypochondriasis(scale1), depression (scale2), hysteria (scale3), psychopathic deviate (scale4), masculinity vs feminity (scale5), paranoia (scale6), psychasthenia (scale7), schizophrenia (scale8), hypomania (scale 9) and social introversion (scale 0) and all these scales are characterized by different symptoms that get revealed through taking the MPPI test. Lastly, the presentation also included the advantages and disadvantages of self -report inventory. REFERENCES Cherry, K. 2020. How Self-Report Inventories Are Used in Psychology. [Retrieved from: https://www.verywellmind.com]. [Accessed on May,20, 2023]. th Feldman, R.S. 2011. Understanding Psychology. (10 Ed). Self-Report Measures Of Personality. McGraw-Hill. New York. Page 463-465.
