Changes in adolescent response patterns on the MMPI/MMPI--a across four decades

Area of Science:

• Psychological assessment
• Developmental psychology
• Longitudinal studies

Background:

• Adolescent self-presentation can influence psychological test results.
• Changes in societal norms and adolescent experiences may impact test responses over time.
• The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and its adolescent version (MMPI-A) are widely used psychological assessment tools.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine changes in adolescent self-presentation on the MMPI and MMPI-A over a 40-year period.
• To compare adolescent responses from different historical cohorts.
• To identify specific scale and item-level changes in adolescent self-presentation.

Main Methods:

• Comparative analysis of adolescent data from three distinct samples (1948-1954, 1985, 1989).
• Utilized MMPI and MMPI-A basic scale, validity scale, Harris-Lingoes subscale, and item-level data.
• Statistical comparison of profile-level and item-level response frequencies between samples.

Main Results:

• Adolescents in the MMPI-A normative sample (1989) scored significantly higher on clinical scales and lower on validity scales L and K compared to the Hathaway and Monachesi (1963) sample (1948-1954).
• Data from the 1985 sample generally fell between the two main comparison groups.
• Significant changes in response frequencies were observed across different eras, with contemporary adolescents showing higher endorsement of clinical scale items.

Conclusions:

• Adolescent self-presentation on the MMPI and MMPI-A has undergone substantial changes over four decades.
• These shifts suggest evolving response patterns and potentially altered self-perceptions among adolescents.
• Researchers and clinicians should consider these historical changes when interpreting MMPI/MMPI-A results for adolescents.