Invitation to Psychology

Chapter 11 Psychological Disorders 387

as depression, paranoia, schizophrenia, and intro-

version. Four additional validity scales indicate

whether a test taker is likely to be lying, defensive,

or evasive while answering the items.

Inventories are only as good as their questions

and how knowledgeably they are interpreted.

Some test items on the MMPI fail to consider

differences among cultural, regional, and socio-

economic groups. For example, Mexican, Puerto

Rican, and Argentine respondents score differ-

ently from non-Hispanic Americans, on aver-

age, on the Masculinity–Femininity Scale. This

difference does not reflect emotional problems

but traditional Latino attitudes toward sex roles

(Cabiya et al., 2000). Also, the MMPI sometimes

labels a person’s responses as evidence of mental

disorder when they are a result of understand-

able stresses, such as during divorce or other legal

disputes that usually make participants upset and

angry (Guthrie & Mobley, 1994; Leib, 2008).

However, testing experts continue to improve

the reliability and validity of the MMPI in clini-

cal assessment by restructuring the clinical scales

to reflect current research on mental disorders

and personality traits (Butcher & Perry, 2008;

Sellbom, Ben-Porath, & Bagby, 2008).

We turn now to a closer examination of some

of the disorders described in the DSM. We have

singled out several that illustrate the range of

psychological problems that afflict humanity, from

the common to the very rare.

poorly, leaving no scientific justification for their
use in child custody evaluations” (Emery, Otto, &
O’Donohue, 2005).

Objective Tests. Many clinicians use objec-
tive tests (inventories), standardized question-
naires that ask about the test taker’s behav-
ior and feelings. Inventories, such as the Beck
Depression Inventory, are generally more reli-
able and valid than either projective methods
or subjective clinical judgments (Dawes, 1994;
Meyer et al., 2001). The most widely used diag-
nostic assessment for personality and emotional
disorders is the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
Inventory (MMPI). The MMPI is organized into
10 categories, or scales, covering such problems

objective tests (inven-

tories) Standardized

objective question-

naires requiring written

responses; they typically

include scales on which

people are asked to rate

themselves.

© The New Yorker Collection 2004 Charles Barsotti from cartoonbank.com. All Rights Reserved.

Recite & Review

Recite: Your mental health will be enhanced if you will say, out loud, what you know about insan-

ity, defining mental disorder, the DSM’s uses and limitations, cultural influences on mental disorders,

projective tests, objective tests, and the MMPI.

Review: Next, reread this section.

Now take this Quick Quiz:

1. The primary purpose of the DSM is to (a) provide descriptive criteria for diagnosing mental
   disorders, (b) help psychologists assess normal as well as abnormal behavior, (c) describe the
   causes of common disorders, (d) keep the number of diagnostic categories of mental disor-
   ders to a minimum.


2. List four criticisms of the DSM.


3. Which of the following disorders is a cultural syndrome? (a) anorexia nervosa, (b) major depres-
   sion, (c) bulimia, (d) schizophrenia, (e) panic attacks


4. What is the advantage of inventories, compared with clinical judgments and projective tests, in
   diagnosing mental disorders?
   Answers:

Study and Review at MyPsychLab

It can foster overdiagnosis; it overlooks the influence of diagnostic labels on the perceptions of others; it often confuses 2. a1.

Inventories have 4. c3. serious mental disorders with everyday problems in living; and it produces an illusion of objectivity.

better reliability and validity.