Adapting the MMPI for use in assessing late adolescents in Trinidad and Tobago

In this study, the original Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) was modified slightly by rewording ten items to fit the vernacular of English employed by young men and women in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The response alternatives were extended to include a "don't understand" answer in addition to "true" and "false." To determine the effectiveness of the MMPI for use in this cultural setting, 202 male and 246 female high school students between the ages of 15 and 20 years were examined. Two clinical groups also were studied: 26 male and 32 female adolescents in psychiatric treatment, as well as 49 male and 14 female juvenile offenders incarcerated for various delinquent acts. The retest stability of the basic MMPI scores was evaluated by readministering the MMPI one week later to samples of normal males and females. Validity scale data indicated that these late adolescents were responding to the MMPI in ways comparable to normal and clinical groups in the United States. The results of this investigation support the use of the MMPI in the appraisal of emotional problems of adolescents seen in both the mental health and criminal justice systems in Trinidad and Tobago.