Spirituality and the MMPI-2

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Health Psychology
• Personality Assessment

Background:

• Spirituality and religious involvement are increasingly recognized as significant factors in overall health and well-being.
• The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) is a widely used tool for assessing personality characteristics and psychopathology.
• Understanding the relationship between personality and spiritual beliefs can offer insights into psychological adjustment and health outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between the MMPI-2 Clinical scales and measures of spirituality.
• To examine how self-reported religious involvement and the Expressions of Spirituality Inventory (ESI) scores relate to MMPI-2 results.

Main Methods:

• Exploratory examination using MANOVA and correlational analyses.
• Utilized the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) Clinical scales.
• Assessed spirituality through self-reported religious involvement and the Expressions of Spirituality Inventory (ESI).

Main Results:

• MMPI-2 Clinical scales showed patterns consistent with existing research on spirituality and health.
• Individuals reporting involvement in organized religion had significantly lower MMPI-2 Clinical scale scores.
• Most MMPI-2 scales, except Masculine-Feminine and Hypomania, correlated with ESI dimensions.

Conclusions:

• The findings support a connection between personality traits and spiritual/religious engagement.
• Lower MMPI-2 scores in religious individuals suggest a potential protective effect or different psychological profiles.
• Further research is warranted to explore the implications of spirituality for health outcomes.