review some of your classmates’ posts and respond to at least 2 of your classmates. Your responses to others should be at least 100 words in length and substantive.

Student one

The MMPI-2 is the most widely used objective tests used to measure psychopathology. How was it developed?

The MMPI-2 is a revision of the original MMPI, which was published in 1943. Starke Hathaway and J.C. McKinley are the authors of the original MMPI. They began their work in the 1930’s. They sought an objective way to measure psychopathology (Pomerantz, 2013). MMPI-2 is the most widely used objective clinical personality test in use today. The MMPI was revised because the data was collected from mostly white and rural populations in Minnesota. The new MMPI-2 had data collection from a more diverse population. In late 2008, a new, shorter version of the MMPI-2 was released. (Pomerantz, 2013). Each scaled included fewer items and is tighter. In other words, each scale overlaps less with the others due to the removal of items that overlapped between scales (Pomerantz, 2013).

What are some advantages of using a disorders-based objective personality measure, such as the MMPI-2?

The advantage of MMPI-2 is that the MMPI-2 is extremely well supported by research on its psychometric characteristics. In thousands of studies regarding reliability or validity, the results have been consistently positive (Pomerantz, 2013). This test can show what a patient or client’s treatment plan should be. It can help the client’s counselor find the right treatment plan for the patient’s diagnosis.

What are some disadvantages?

The MMPI-2 is not without limitations. It has been criticized for being too lengthy, requiring reading ability and prolonged attention beyond the capability of some clients, and being susceptible to “faking” by sophisticated clients who can outwit the validity scales (Pomerantz, 2013). A final criticism of MMPI tests focuses on their emphasis on forms of psychopathology as the factors that make up personality. The clinical scales of the MMPI tests describe a client’s personality by describing the extent to which they have various pathologies (Depression, schizophrenia, etc.) as opposed to emphasizing other aspects of personality, such as normal traits or strengths (Pomerantz, 2013).

How could the disadvantages affect both diagnosis and treatment?

If a client so chooses to fake their answers on the test, it can cause a misdiagnosis in the client. The client’s counselor could issue the wrong treatment plan if the diagnosis is not really the client’s true diagnosis. Some clients may not answer truthfully because they might be embarrassed by their condition and not want anyone to really know what their condition might be.

Gina Holland

Reference:

Pomerantz, A. M. (2013). Clinical Psychology: Science, Practice, and Culture, 3rd Edition. [Purdue University Global Bookshelf]. Retrieved fromhttps://purdueuniversityglobal.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781452285795/

Student Two

The MMPI-2 is a self-report assessment that is an updated version of the MMPI that was initially released in 1943 (Pomerantz, 2014). The updated version was released in 1989 and contains 567 descriptive sentences that an individual marks true or false based on how it applies to themselves. The scales of MMPI-2 cover “behavior, feelings, and attitudes” Pomerantz, 2014, pg 229). The MMPI-2 revision addressed weaknesses with the original MMPI. The normal ranges of the original assessment were based on 724 individuals of Minnesota in the 1940’s. The updated version of the MMPI-2 normative group was based on 2600 individuals from seven states across the United States and removed outdated content (Pomerantz, 2014).

Advantages of using the MMPI-2 is the science assessment aids in diagnoses based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V)(Pomerantz, 2014). The client’s data gathered from the MMPI-2 can play a role in therapy. The feedback aids in client-therapist discussions (Pomerantz, 2014).

Disadvantages of the MMPI-2 the test is lengthy requires individuals to have basic reading skills and long attention spans, (Pomerantz, 2014) Some clients may be able to outwit the test and overemphasize or underemphasize particular areas resulting in inaccurate results. This error could result in an inaccurate diagnosis resulting in unnecessary treatment or not receive adequate treatment. The MMPI-2 also tends to focus and described pathological traits versus normal personality traits.

References:

Pomerantz, A. (2014). Clinical Psychology, 2nd Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.