The MMP-2-RF and college students: Do we remain stuck in a normative no-man’s land?
Abstract
Sixty-plus years of research have demonstrated that college students tend to score significantly higher than older adults on the earlier forms of the MMPI (i.e., MMPI and MMPI-2). Relatively little research has examined whether this pattern of results holds with the newer MMPI-2-RF. The present study compared MMPI-2-RF scores of college students, both by gender and combined, to a reference group composed of equal numbers of men and women from the MMPI-2 normative sample. Results demonstrated that this pattern of higher scores among college students remains a concern when using the MMPI-2-RF. Of particular concern is the finding that women’s scores appear to be more affected by the use of non-gendered norms on the MMPI-2-RF than do the scores of men. Caution is urged when interpreting MMPI-2-RF results obtained from college students, particularly women.References
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