A comparison of MMPI-2-RF scores between White and African American college students

Abstract

Sixty-plus years of research have demonstrated an inconsistent pattern of differences between African American and White respondents on the earlier forms of the MMPI (i.e., MMPI and MMPI-2). Relatively little research has examined the possibility of racial and/or ethnic differences in scores on the newer MMPI-2-RF. The present study compared MMPI-2-RF scores of college students, both by gender and combined, by self-reported race. Results revealed significant differences in scores on some scales of the MMPI-2-RF, along with differences in the distributions of clinically elevated scores. The majority of scales, however, did not evidence any significant pattern of racial/ethnic differences. Of particular interest is the finding that women’s MMPI-2-RF scores appear to be vary more between races than do the scores of men. Implications of the findings were discussed.