MMPI correlates of clinical women who report early sexual abuse

• Published in: Journal of clinical psychology Vol. 41; no. 6; pp. 763 - 766
• Main Authors: Roland, Billy C., Zelhart, Paul F., Cochran, Samuel W., Funderburk, Van W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Brandon Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 01.11.1985; Wiley
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Child Abuse; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Incest; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; MMPI; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychometrics; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Psychotherapy; Victimology; Human; Clinical test; Testimony; Information credibility; Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory; Sexual violence; Psychometrics; Infantile experience; Woman; Victimology
• DOI: 10.1002/1097-4679(198511)41:6<763::AID-JCLP2270410606>3.0.CO;2-O
• ISSN: 0021-9762

It was predicted from Freud's seduction theory that women who experienced sexual assault early in life would be identifiable by the MMPI. Twenty‐six of 51 women treated at a psychotherapy clinic during a 2‐year period reported experiencing sexual abuse as a child (RA); 25 made no such claim (NRA). Age, income level, years of formal education, marital status, and k‐corrected scores of the MMPI were submitted to a stepwise multivariate discriminant analysis. It was found that the HY, MF, Hs, and PD scales constituted a linear function that correctly classified 72.55% of the subjects (Wilkes Lambda = .670785, df4, p = .0009). These scales correctly identified 73.1% of the RA and 72.0% of the NRA clients.