Research evaluating the diagnostic value of the MMPI PK scale for determining Posttraumatic Stress Disorder has been consistendy positive. Various cutoff points have been suggested, depending on the population studied. The current study, involving a select group of police candidates from middle-sized midwestern towns, suggests that low PK scores may represent robustness. These subjects as a group made low use of health and mental health services and obtained very low PK scores (T=41), although they made average scores on the clinical scales.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
American Psychiatric Association (1968) DSM-II: diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. (2nd ed.) Washington, DC: Author.
2.
American Psychiatric Association (1980) DSM-III: diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. (3rd ed.) Washington, DC: Author.
3.
American Psychiatric Association. (1987) DSM-III-R: diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. (3rd ed., Rev.) Washington, DC: Author.
4.
American Psychiatric Association. (1994) DSM-IV: diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. (4th ed.) Washington, DC: Author.
5.
BartolC. R. (1991) Predictive validation of the MMPI for small-town police officers who fail. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 22, 127–132.
6.
ButcherJ. N.DahlstromW. G.GrahamJ. G.TellegenA., & KemmerB. (1989) Manual for administration and scoring MMPI-2.Minneapolis, MN: Univer. of Minnesota Press.
7.
GreeneR. L. (1991) The MMPI-2/MMPI: an interpretive manual.Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
8.
HargraveG. E., & HiattD. (1987) Law enforcement selection with the interview, MMPI, and CPI: a study of reliability and validity, Journal of Police Science and Administration, 15, 110–117.
9.
KeaneT. M.MalloyP. F., & FairbanksJ. A. (1984) Empirical development of an MMPI subscale for the assessment of combat-related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 52, 888–891.
10.
LyonsJ. A., & KeaneT. M. (1992) Keane PTSD scale: MMPI and MMPI-2 update. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 5, 111–117.
11.
ManlyR. H.BainsD. S.BloemW. D., & BusbyR. M. (1995) Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and the MMPI-2. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 8, 171–178.
12.
MarinelliV. (1993) PTSD in active duty Jaw enforcement officers. Paper presented at the 101st Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association at Toronto, Canada.
13.
MillerT.KrausR., & KamenchenkoP. (1993) Cross-cultural assessment of traumatic stress disorder in veterans of foreign wars. Paper presented at the 101st Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association at Toronto, Canada.
14.
NealL. A.BusuttilW.RollinsI.HerepathR.StrikeP., & TurnbullG. (1994) Convergent validity of measures of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in a mixed military and civilian population. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 7, 447–455.
15.
Op den VeldeW.HovensJ. E.AartsP. G. H.Frey-WoutersE.FalgerP. R. J.van DuijnH., & De GroenJ. H. M. (1996) Prevalence and course of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Dutch veterans of the civilian resistance during World War II: an overview. Psychological Reports, 78, 519–529.
16.
PeeblesM. J. (1989) Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 53, 274–286.
17.
RosenhaftE. (1994) Brecht's Germany: 1898–1933. In ThompsonP. & SacksG. (Eds.), The Cambridge companion to Brecht.Cambridge, Eng.: Univer. of Cambridge. P. 6.
18.
SchlengerW. E., & KulkaR. A. (1987) Performance of the Keane-Fairbanks MMPI scale and other self-report measures in identifying Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, New York.
19.
ShusmanE.InwaldR., & KnatuH. (1987) A cross-validation study of police recruit performance as predicted by the IPI and MMPI. Journal of Police Science and Administration, 15, 162–169.
20.
SinnettE. R. (1993) Clinical note on MMPI Posttraumatic Stress Disorder scale (PK). Psychological Reports, 73, 893–894.
21.
SinnettE. R. (1994) Note on the PTSD-S scale of the MMPI. Psychological Reports, 74, 1041–1042.
22.
SinnettE. R.HolenM. C., & AlbottW. L. (1995) MMPI scores of female victims. Psychological Reports, 76, 139–144.
