Construction and validation of an anorexia nervosa scale on the MMPI

The article describes the construction and validation of an anorexia nervosa subscale (ANOR) on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). The female subjects included 42 anorexic patients, 56 normal controls and 56 patient controls. Using an empirical discrimination procedure, 60 items contribute to the total homogeneity of the scale and the Chronbach's alpha is 0.86. The five items common with the Hysteria scale represent the highest number of common items with the main MMPI clinical scales. Crossvalidation findings support the results. Content analyses indicate that the ANOR covers important features of anorexia nervosa like a fear of sexual matters, disturbed social relations, rigidity, a depressed mood, low self esteem and a dissatisfaction with appearance.