Citation

Holland TR, Levi M. Crim. Justice Behav. 1979; 6(4): 359-364.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1979, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/009385487900600404

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) profiles of 560 adult male offenders undergoing felony presentence evaluation were analyzed according to the type and unanimity of sentencing recommendations made independently by clinicians and caseworkers. Offenders unanimously recommended for institutional confinement were characterized by higher levels on scales F, Pd, Pa, Pt, and Sc than were their probation-recommended counterparts, and disputed or mixed recommendation cases exhibited intermediate scores on all five scales. Because only clinicians examined the M M PI performance of the subjects prior to making recommendations, the findings suggest the possible use that clinicians might have made of M M PI data during the evaluation process; whereas for caseworkers, the results support the construct validity of the MMPI insofar as it was seen to be sensitive to deviant personality trends that were evident to these decision makers from interview and / or case history sources of information.

Language: en