Exploring the residual effects of malingering in mock victims of violent crime: an experimental vignette study

The current study investigated the residual effects of malingering in a sample of 94 Dutch university students. Participants were ordered or advised (but not obliged) to fake psychological symptoms in response to an imaginary act of violent crime victimization in order to obtain financial compensation from the Dutch state or to respond honestly. Participants’ willingness to malinger was assessed with three types of questionnaires: (1) a questionnaire which measures the tendency to report bizarre and unlikely symptoms, (2) a questionnaire which measures the tendency to underperform on facial recognition tasks, and (3) a questionnaire which measures the tendency to report extremely high levels of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. After completion of a Sudoku puzzle, participants were again instructed to fill out the three questionnaires, but this time they all had to respond honestly. Results indicated that participants who had been instructed to malinger (ordered or advised) had higher scores on all questionnaires, not only on the first but also on the second occasion. This suggested that residual effects of initial malingering had occurred. Results further suggested that detection of residual effects may depend on measurement method and instruction wording. Findings are discussed in light of the literature and study limitations.