Assessment of Personality

Question 1

The big question in psychological

intervention:

Answer 1

WHAT treatment, by WHOM, is most effective for THIS individual with THAT specific problem, under WHICH set of circumstances?

Question 2

Psychological Assessment involves

Answer 2

the systematic collection of information related to an individual’s biopsychosocial functioning: thoughts, feelings, behaviours, personality traits, cognitive abilities, social functioning, social support, coping styles, etc.

Question 3

Purposes of Assessment

Answer 3

Diagnosis and problem identification
Treatment planning
Treatment evaluation
Forensic applications
Personnel selection applications

Question 4

Components of an Assessment

Answer 4

Diagnostic Interview
- structured and semi structured
- Mental Status Examination (orientation, affect, thought
processes)
- Continuous observation

Use of formal measures

• specific focused
• comprehensive multidimensional (PAI, MMPI)

Question 5

Projective personality measures

Answer 5

Rorschach Inkblots, Thematic Apperception Test, House- Tree-Person drawing tasks
Often idiosyncratically administered, scored, and interpreted

Question 6

Formal Personality measures

Answer 6

Comprehensive multidimensional measures of symptoms, behaviours, personality traits, coping styles

Question 7

PAI

Answer 7

Personality Assessment Inventory

• 11 multidimensional clinical syndromes
• 344 items rated from 0 (“false, not at all true”) to 3 (“very true”) rather than simply true-false
• 4th grade reading level

Question 8

PAI Validity Scales

Answer 8

ICN: Inconsistency
INF: Infrequency
NIM: Negative Impression Management n PIM: Positive Impression Management

Question 9

Other scale types:

Answer 9

Clinical scales
- Subscales
Treatment scales
Interpersonal scales

Question 10

PAI interpretation steps

Answer 10

1. Evaluate profile validity/test-taking approach
2. 2. Evaluate individual scales or codetypes
      - start with overall score, move to subscales, then individual items
      - also consider supplementary indexes (patterns of scores)

Question 11

PAI for treatment planning

Answer 11

Mean Clinical Elevation (MCE) of 11 clinical scales (high = more challenging)
Treatment Rejection Scale (RXR) (Scores > 50 may not have adequate motivation)

Question 12

MMPI

Answer 12

5th-6th grade reading level
338 true-false items
9 (or 10) validity scales
40 “substantive scales” measuring personality and psychopathology, in five content domains

Question 13

MMPI steps

Answer 13

Step 1, take a “First Pass” for an overview
- profile validity
- higher order scales
- additional problems scales
Step 2: “second pass”
- work though scale elevations, interpretation worksheet
Step 3: narrative report

Question 14

PAI vs MMPI

Answer 14

Both have similar number of items, take similar amount of time

Reading level (4th grade) on the PAI likely better than MMPI- 2-RF (5th-6th grade)

PAI more clearly focused within a DSM/categorical framework, MMPI-2-RF, movement to a more dimensional approach

MMPI: Fewer specifically designed treatment engagement and prognosis scales compared