The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

Abstract

The MMPI deserves inclusion in this volume because it is the most widely used personality inventory in the United States (Lubin, Wallis, & Paine, 1971). In contrast to projective techniques such as the Rorschach and Thematic Apperception Test, which have ambiguous stimuli and unstructured response formats, the nonambiguous stimuli (self-reference statements) and structured response format (true/false) of the MMPI qualify it for classification as an objective technique. While much has been written about the differences between projective and objective techniques, the two categories of tests probably are more alike than different. Both kinds of tests have as a primary goal the prediction of important nontest behavior of examinees. In addition, the interpretation of both objective and projective test data is “a highly subjective art which requires a well-trained and experienced practitioner to give such ‘scores’ predictive meaning in the life of any given human being” (Matarazzo, 1972, p. 11).