Reliability and Validity of the Spanish Version of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–Adolescent (MMPI–A)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the test–retest reliability and internal consistency of the scales of the Spanish version of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–Adolescent (MMPI–A; Butcher et al., 1992). Two samples of 939 and 109 Spanish adolescents ages 14 to 18 years were assessed with the MMPI–A in their school environment. The first sample responded to the inventory once, whereas the second sample responded to it on 2 occasions with a 2-week interval between sessions. Results showed no significant differences in means or variances between the first and the second test administration for most MMPI–A scales. Test–retest reliability ranged between .62 (Amorality, Ma₁) and .92 (Immaturity, IMM); most correlations exceeded .70. Internal consistency values for the MMPI–A scales in the pretest and posttest were very similar overall. External validity of the MMPI–A was demonstrated through several significant correlations between its scales and YSR/11–18 syndromes and social interaction measures. The highest correlations were established between the Anxious/Depressed YSR/11–18 scale and other MMPI–A scales such as Schizophrenia (Sc), Welsh's Anxiety (A), Adolescent-Anxiety (A-anx) and Adolescent-Alienation (A-aln), and between the Social Avoidance and Distress Scale and the MMPI–A Adolescent-Social Discomfort (A-sod) scale.