The use of the MMPI special scales in the assessment of delinquent personality.

The MMPI was administered to 401 adjudicated male juvenile offenders, ages 13 to 17, who had been referred to a juvenile court mental health unit for recommendations in court disposition. Mean T scores generated by 86 MMPI clinical and supplementary scales were tabulated and analyzed as to their relationships with completed court offense histories. Twenty-eight of these scales that best described and discriminated between high and low levels of recidivism, crime severity, assault, and property offenses were identified, profiled, and discussed. Data were analyzed by a suggested T-score cutoff of 1.5 standard deviations, univariate, and multivariate (discriminant) analysis. Scales that best discriminated between high and low levels of recidivism and property offenses were Pd (Psychopathic Deviance), Ma1 (Amorality), Pd2 (Authority Problems), Re (Social Responsibility), and MAC (MacAndrew Alcoholism). Low scores on Re (Social Responsibility), Es (Ego Strength), Cn (Control), and St (Social Status) best discriminated between high and low levels of crime severity. High and low levels of assault were best differentiated by Ma3 (Imperturbability), Scale 5 (Masculinity-Femininity), and Pa2 (Poignancy). Although the linear combination of Scales F, 4, 8, and 9 has some utility in the areas of recidivism and property offenses, its discriminative ability is extremely poor for levels of assault and crime severity.