Giving the Self a Voice in MMPI Self-report: Jerry Wiggins and the Content Scales

This article places one of Jerry Wiggins' contributions to the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), his content scales, in the twin contexts of past and recent research, and of Wiggins' own preoccupations growing out of the interpersonal point of view. It highlights Wiggins' perspective on the position of the person in the process of personality assessment, with special reference to the means by which the person's communication with the assessor may become accessible as a voice to be heard in the total pattern of assessment findings. Finally, one of the newer trends in personality assessment, one highly congenial to Wiggins' interpersonal outlook, is discussed with reference to the role that the MMPI-2 Content Scales may play in its future development.