MMPI-2 characteristics in a chronic pain population

This study investigated the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) characteristics of 209 chronic pain patients in an inpatient pain treatment program. Patients completed the MMPI-2, Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale, and Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire. Participants in this sample were matched with comparison participants from the MMPI-2 normative sample on the demographic variables gender, age, and ethnicity. Chronic pain patients reported higher levels of general maladjustment and affective distress than did the normative control group, including more anxiety, depressive symptomatology, and somatic complaints. The MMPI-2 basic scales Hypochondriasis, Depression, and Hysteria were the most useful discriminating factors between chronic pain patients and normal controls, and the content scales Health Concerns and Depression showed significant elevations for the chronic pain group. The 1-3/3-1, 1-2/2-1, and 2-3/3-2 code types accounted for more than two thirds of all two-point classifications for the chronic pain group, and four cluster analysis types classified nearly half of all of these protocols.