Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 19, 2026

An Experimental Analysis of Children's Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime
Published on: May 3, 2016
Taxometric analysis of impression management and self-deception on the MMPI-2 in child-custody litigants
Abstract:
The typology of impression management (IM), a deliberate attempt to create a positive social image, and self-deceptive positivity (SDP), an unintentional concealment of symptoms, were examined using taxometric procedures with MMPI-2 (Butcher, Dahlstrom, Graham, Tellegen, & Kaemmer, 1989) underreporting scales in several custody-litigant samples. IM was identified as a taxon using several procedures and estimates of the base rate that were consistent (.40, .37, .31, .36, .37). SDP was better characterized as a dimensional construct. Means and estimated validities for MMPI-2 underreporting scales in this sample are reported. IM and SDP appear to be distinct and measurable underreporting constructs on the MMPI-2.
Related Concept Videos
Self-Report Tests of Personality
Managing Impressions
Impression Management Techniques I: Managing Appearances
Strategies of Self-Presentation III: Self-Monitoring
Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping
Understanding Deception

