Defensiveness in the criminally insane

The MMPI and 16 PF were administered to 45 forensic patients and scores on five derived measures of defensiveness were computed. The 10 highest and 10 lowest scoring subjects were assigned to either a high or low defensiveness group and their responses analyzed with regard to the Schizophrenia, Paranoia, Psychopathic Deviate and Hostility clinical scales and sub-scales of the MMPI according to past or present items. Results confirm that high defensiveness subjects are selectively and cautiously interpreting items so as to admit to significantly less overall pathology and relatively less present pathology than low defensiveness subjects. This finding represents a consistent strategy of defensiveness rather than an artifact of false response bias. This study has implications for personality assessment in Forensic Psychology and the potential of trend analysis for the prediction of future dangerous behavior in a forensic patient population.