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MMPI F‐K index among hospitalized Vietnam veterans
Author(s) -
Hyer Lee,
Woods Marilyn,
Harrison William R.,
Boudewyns Patrick,
O'Leary William C.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/1097-4679(198903)45:2<250::aid-jclp2270450211>3.0.co;2-n
Subject(s) - minnesota multiphasic personality inventory , normative , psychiatry , psychology , index (typography) , population , clinical psychology , veterans affairs , medicine , personality , social psychology , environmental health , philosophy , epistemology , world wide web , computer science
The F‐K index of the MMPI has been used as a marker of symptom overreporting. One population for which previous research has shown this pattern is Vietnam in‐country veterans with PTSD. This study assessed the F‐K index on 515 inpatients: 329 Vietnam in‐country and 186 Vietnamera patients. Normative data on psychiatric inpatients were presented. Also, a special MMPI subscale (MMPI‐PTSD), a measure to identify PTSD among these veterans, was used. Results showed that all Vietnam veterans, especially in‐country veterans, overreport symptoms to a high degree. The overall mean for in‐country vets was 7.3. Also, when the special MMPI‐PTSD subscale was used, a vast majority of in‐country veterans who were in the PTSD range had high F‐K index scores. Dissimulation as a symptom of PTSD was discussed.