Association of the MMPI-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) Validity Scales with Structured Malingering Criteria

The current study examined the validity scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF; Ben-Porath and Tellegen 2008) in relation to the structured malingering criteria developed to assess malingered neurocognitive dysfunction and pain-related disability. These criteria examined a sample of 251 individuals undergoing compensation-seeking evaluations, who completed a battery of response bias measures. The MMPI-2-RF over-reporting scales yielded large effect sizes in contrasting those in the probable/definite malingering groups from the incentive only groups. The largest effects were found for the Infrequent Responses and Gervais et al. (Assessment, 14, 196–208, 2007) Response Bias Scale, an experimental scale that can be scored on the MMPI-2-RF. Classification analyses were also utilized to examine various cut scores for the individual validity scales, as well as their use in combination. These results suggest that the MMPI-2-RF validity scales can be used to screen for malingering, as they exhibited good sensitivity at lower cutoffs. The implications of these results and their use in forensic evaluations are discussed.