A Cuphea beta-ketoacyl-ACP synthase shifts the synthesis of fatty acids towards shorter chains in Arabidopsis seeds expressing Cuphea FatB thioesterases

In order to assess the effectiveness of the validity scales from the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991), 111 Introductory Psychology students completed the Positive Impression Management scale (PIM) and the Defensiveness Index (DEF) from the PAI along with the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR; Paulhus, 1984) under two instructional sets: 'forthright" and "fake good." Both PAI measures of socially desirable responding were superior to the BIDR scales at identifying protocols written under the fake good instructions. Contrary to Morey (1991), the results from this study support the use of a raw score of 18 as the cut-off on the PIM scale rather than 23. Using 18 as the criterion, 85.1% of cases were correctly classified. A cut-off score for the DEF (5) was derived and tested. Using this criterion resulted in the correct classification of 83.3% cases. A discriminant function that incorporated both the PAI indices produced no substantial improvement in classification accuracy.     

"Detection of overreported psychopathology with the MMPI-2 RF validity scales": Correction to Sellbom and Bagby (2010).

Reports an error in "Detection of overreported psychopathology with the MMPI-2 RF form validity scales" by Martin Sellbom and R. Michael Bagby (Psychological Assessment, 2010[Dec], Vol 22[4], 757-767). There was an error in the title. The title should have read “Detection of Overreported Psychopathology With the MMPI-2-RF Validity Scales.” (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2010-24850-001.) We examined the utility of the validity scales on the recently released Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2 RF; Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008) to detect overreported psychopathology. This set of validity scales includes a newly developed scale and revised versions of the original MMPI-2 validity scales. We used an analogue, experimental simulation in which MMPI-2 RF responses (derived from archived MMPI-2 protocols) of undergraduate students instructed to overreport psychopathology (in either a coached or noncoached condition) were compared with those of psychiatric inpatients who completed the MMPI-2 under standardized instructions. The MMPI-2 RF validity scale Infrequent Psychopathology Responses best differentiated the simulation groups from the sample of patients, regardless of experimental condition. No other validity scale added consistent incremental predictive utility to Infrequent Psychopathology Responses in distinguishing the simulation groups from the sample of patients. Classification accuracy statistics confirmed the recommended cut scores in the MMPI-2 RF manual (Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detection of overreported psychopathology with the MMPI-2 RF form validity scales.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 23(1) of Psychological Assessment (see record 2011-01446-001). There was an error in the title. The title should have read “Detection of Overreported Psychopathology With the MMPI-2-RF Validity Scales.”] [Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Psychological Assessment (see record 2011-01446-001). There was an error in the title. The title should have read “Detection of Overreported Psychopathology With the MMPI-2-RF Validity Scales.”] We examined the utility of the validity scales on the recently released Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2 RF; Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008) to detect overreported psychopathology. This set of validity scales includes a newly developed scale and revised versions of the original MMPI-2 validity scales. We used an analogue, experimental simulation in which MMPI-2 RF responses (derived from archived MMPI-2 protocols) of undergraduate students instructed to overreport psychopathology (in either a coached or noncoached condition) were compared with those of psychiatric inpatients who completed the MMPI-2 under standardized instructions. The MMPI-2 RF validity scale Infrequent Psychopathology Responses best differentiated the simulation groups from the sample of patients, regardless of experimental condition. No other validity scale added consistent incremental predictive utility to Infrequent Psychopathology Responses in distinguishing the simulation groups from the sample of patients. Classification accuracy statistics confirmed the recommended cut scores in the MMPI-2 RF manual (Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detecting back irrelevant responding on the Personality Assessment Inventory in a psychiatric inpatient setting.

The present studies focus on strategies for detecting back irrelevant responding (BIR) on the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; L. C. Morey, 1991). Moderate BIR levels can greatly affect the clinical scales of the PAI. Further, the PAI's Inconsistency and Infrequency validity scales are less than optimal for detecting BIR. L. C. Morey and C. J. Hopwood (2004) developed an alternative strategy for detecting BIR that involves comparison of 2 scales from the PAI short-form with the same 2 scales from the PAI full-instrument. The present study examines how different BIR levels affect the clinical, treatment, and interpersonal scales of the PAI in 2 psychiatric inpatient samples. The effectiveness of various strategies for detecting BIR in an inpatient setting is also discussed. Consistent with previous research, moderate rates of BIR impacted several PAI scales in a meaningful way. The Inconsistency and Infrequency validity scales of the PAI were relatively ineffective for detecting low-to-moderate BIR levels. Conversely, the short-form full-instrument comparison strategy was much more sensitive to BIR. Finally, a new BIR detection indicator is presented that improves sensitivity rates for detecting all BIR levels in an acute setting. The implications of these results for detecting BIR in inpatient settings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changing time frames on symptom inventories: Effects on the Psychiatric Epidemiology Research Interview.

The effect of changing a time frame used in the Psychiatric Epidemiology Research Interview (PERI) from 1 year to 1 month was studied by randomly assigning year and month versions of the PERI to a sample of respondents from an urban community. Although the response format (never, almost never, sometimes, fairly often, very often) of PERI items requires an implicit averaging of symptom frequencies over time, we found that the mean values of the scale scores were consistently larger for the year time frame than they were for the month time frame for all 14 symptom scales. The variances of the scales in the year version were also larger than those in the month version, and the covariance pattern of the scales within the versions was different, although this later difference seemed to result from differences on only 4 of the scales. The internal consistencies of the scales in both versions were good to very good. Neither version was consistently better in distinguishing persons with known psychopathology (sampled separately from psychiatric treatment facilities) from persons with no known psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Screening for malingering in a criminal-forensic sample with the Personality Assessment Inventory.

In this study, the authors examined how overreporting of psychopathology indices on the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; L. C. Morey, 1991) performed as screening measures for malingering in a sample of 166 defendants undergoing pretrial court-ordered evaluations in the federal criminal justice system. Using results from the Structured Interview of Reported Symptoms (SIRS; R. Rogers, R. M. Bagby, & S. E. Dickens, 1992) as the criterion measure of malingering, the authors found that the Negative Impression scale (NIM) was the most effective PAI screening measure (cut score ≥ 81T). NIM performed as well as an established comparison measure from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory--2 (J. N. Butcher, W. G. Dahlstrom, J. R. Graham, A. Tellegen, & B. Kaemmer, 1989; Infrequency [F] cut score ≥ 95T), supporting the use of either of these indices as reasonable screening measures to identify potential malingerers for subsequent evaluation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the validity of validity scales: The importance of defensive responding in the prediction of institutional misconduct.

This study examined the effects of defensive responding on the prediction of institutional misconduct among male inmates (N = 349) who completed the Personality Assessment Inventory (L. C. Morey, 1991). Hierarchical logistic regression analyses demonstrated significant main effects for the Antisocial Features (ANT) scale as well as main effects for the Positive Impression Management (PIM) scale in some instances. Significant ANT × PIM interactions also were evident, particularly when examining recommended cut scores on these scales. These results demonstrate the predictive validity of ANT with prisoners and reinforce the importance of context when considering whether validity scales are in fact valid. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential expression of flectin in the extracellular matrix and left-right asymmetry in mouse embryonic heart during looping stages

The characteristics of six different indicators of response distortion on the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991) were evaluated by having college students complete the PAI under positive impression management, malingering, and honest responding conditions. The six indicators were the PAI Positive Impression (PIM) and Negative Impression (NIM) scales, the Malingering and Defensiveness Indexes, and two discriminant functions, one developed by Cashel and the other by Rogers. Protocols of students asked to malinger were compared with those of actual clinical patients, while protocols of students asked to manage their impression in a positive direction were compared with those of students asked to respond honestly. Comparisons between groups were accomplished through the examination of effect sizes and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. All six indicators demonstrated the ability to distinguish between actual and feigned responding. The Rogers function was particularly effective in identifying malingering. The Cashel function was less effective than other measures in identifying positive impression management, although it appears to also have promise as an indicator of malingering.     

Acculturation and peritraumatic dissociation in young adult Latino survivors of community violence.

This study examined the relationship between acculturation and peritraumatic dissociation in a sample of 304 physically injured Latino survivors of community violence. Item response theory analyses were conducted to document the measurement equivalence of English- and Spanish-language versions of a scale measuring peritraumatic dissociation. After establishing equivalence, structural equation modeling was used to determine the impact of acculturation on peritraumatic dissociation after controlling for other relevant covariates, including assault characteristics, intoxication before the assault, and trauma exposure history. Acculturation emerged as a significant and negative predictor of dissociation, so that high levels of acculturation were associated with low levels of peritraumatic dissociation. These findings offer a counterinstance to the emerging consensus that retention of Latin American cultural traditions serves to promote mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Adaptation and validation of the Spanish-language Trauma Symptom Inventory in Puerto Rico.

Objective: This research was conducted to assess the Spanish-language Trauma Symptom Inventory's (Briere, 1995) suitability for use with a Puerto Rican sample. Minor revisions were made to the original instrument following a comprehensive appraisal involving a bilingual committee and pilot focus group. The present study outlines the review and adaptation process and examines the psychometric properties of the revised instrument, the Inventario de Síntomas de Trauma-Revisado (IST–R). Method: A sample of 225 students (155 women, 70 men) at the University of Puerto Rico, age 20 to 59 (M = 23.24, SD = 4.69), participated in the validation study. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire; a self-report trauma exposure instrument; and measures of psychological distress, including Spanish-language versions of the Beck Depression Inventory, Symptom Checklist—36, and the Dissociative Experiences Scale. Results: Reliability coefficients for the IST–R clinical scales ranged from .69 to .91 (mean α = .84), and correlation coefficients were strongest for scales measuring the same constructs. Factor loadings obtained were consistent with those reported in the literature. Results support the internal consistency and construct validity of the IST–R. Conclusions: Culturally and linguistically appropriate assessment instruments are needed to address the mental health needs of diverse populations. Results from this study provide evidence for the clinical and research promise of the IST–R as a screening tool for trauma-related symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality Assessment Inventory substance-use scales: Convergent and discriminant relations with the Addiction Severity Index in a residential chemical dependence treatment setting.

This study examined the convergent and discriminant validity of the Alcohol Problems (ALC) and Drug Problems (DRG) scales of the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991). Participants were 103 male veterans (mean age?=?41.7 years) in a Veterans Affairs residential treatment for chemical dependence. The PAI was compared to the Addiction Severity Index (ASI; McLellan et al., 1992), a semistructured interview. The sampling strategy that was used resulted in a diverse sample (66% African American, 33% Caucasian; 59% with primary alcohol diagnosis, 38% with primary drug diagnosis, 56% with comorbid alcohol and drug diagnoses) and adequately variable ALC and DRG scores. Results supported the convergent validity of both the ALC and DRG scales in relation to both the ASI and substance-use diagnosis. The ALC scale also demonstrated excellent discriminant validity, whereas the discriminant validity of the DRG scale was less impressive. Despite this, the DRG scale performed better in the current diverse sample than observed in an earlier study (Alterman et al., 1995). Recommendations for the use of the PAI in chemical dependence treatment settings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validation of diagnostic measures based on latent class analysis: A step forward in response bias research.

The use of criterion group validation is hindered by the difficulty of classifying individuals on latent constructs. Latent class analysis (LCA) is a method that can be used for determining the validity of scales meant to assess latent constructs without such a priori classifications. The authors used this method to examine the ability of the L scale of the MMPI-2 (J. N. Butcher et al., 2001), the Impression Management scale of the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (D. L. Paulhus, 1991), and the Endorsement of Excessive Virtue scale of the Psychological Screening Inventory (R. I. Lanyon, 1970) to identify favorable response bias (misrepresentation) in a situation where no criterion for individual classifications existed. Results suggest that LCA can be used as a method for assessing the validity of scales that measure unobservable conditions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The convergence and predictive validity of the Multidimensional Pain Inventory and the Personality Assessment Inventory among individuals with chronic pain.

Objective: To explore the convergence, redundancy, and validity of the Multidimensional Pain Inventory (MPI) and the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) in a chronic pain treatment setting. Participants: Data from intake (N=235) and follow-up (N=187) for individuals with an average of 9 years of chronic pain who participated in a 20-day integrative treatment program were analyzed. Outcome Measures: Oswestry Disability Index, Beck Depression and Anxiety inventories, Rand Short-Form Health Survey, and clinician-rated ability to stand and carry. Results: Conjoint factor analyses suggested that the MPI and PAI combine to tap five orthogonal factors: Negative Affect, Support, Externalizing, Physical Dysfunction, and Impulsivity. MPI and PAI scales significantly related to various aspects of client functioning, although these scales were more limited in predicting clinician-rated markers and change during treatment. Conclusion: Results support the combined use of the MPI and PAI to understand patient heterogeneity and predict treatment outcome in chronic pain samples. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The ability of individuals with psychoactive substance use disorders to escape detection by the Personality Assessment Inventory.

The ability of individuals with psychoactive substance use disorders to dissimulate successfully on the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; L. C. Morey, 1991) was evaluated. Patients receiving treatment for drug abuse who were instructed to respond honestly (n?=?59) had significantly higher scores on the PAI scales measuring problems with alcohol and other drug use than (a) patients instructed to respond defensively (n?=?59), (b) respondents suspected of abusing psychoactive substances who were referred for an evaluation by the criminal justice system and who had reasons to conceal their drug use (n?=?59), and (c) respondents from a nonclinical control group (n?=?9). However, a PAI validity scale designed to measure positive dissimulation was prone to making false positive and false negative errors, depending on the cutoff employed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationship between clinician assessment and self-assessment of personality disorders using the SWAP-200 and PAI.

The relation between self- and peer-informant reports of personality using psychometric instruments has been the focus of considerable research. The quantified judgments of clinically experienced observers such as treating clinicians have also been studied. The focus of the present article is on the measurement of 3 personality disorders (borderline, antisocial, and obsessive-compulsive) using the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure (SWAP-200), an instrument designed to quantify personality ratings made by clinically experienced informants, and the self-report Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI). SWAP-200 personality disorder scales showed small to medium correlations with borderline and antisocial personality disorder scales from the PAI. As predicted, SWAP-200 obsessive-compulsive personality disorder correlated negatively with these scales, suggesting discriminant validity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Two-component models of socially desirable responding.

J. Millham and L. I. Jacobson's (1978) 2-factor model of socially desirable responding based on denial and attribution components is reviewed and disputed. A 2nd model distinguishing self-deception and impression management components is reviewed and shown to be related to early factor-analytic work on desirability scales. Two studies, with 511 undergraduates, were conducted to test the model. A factor analysis of commonly used desirability scales (e.g., Lie scale of the MMPI, Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale) revealed that the 2 major factors were best interpreted as Self-Deception and Impression Management. A 2nd study employed confirmatory factor analysis to show that the attribution/denial model does not fit the data as well as the self-deception/impression management model. A 3rd study, with 100 Ss, compared scores on desirability scales under anonymous and public conditions. Results show that those scales that had loaded highest on the Impression Management factor showed the greatest mean increase from anonymous to public conditions. It is recommended that impression management, but not self-deception, be controlled in self-reports of personality. (54 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Analysis of defensiveness in relation to psychopathology.

Attempted (a) to determine what factors account for relationships among items representative of 5 well-known measures of defensiveness, and (b) to relate the factors found to homogeneous measures of psychopathology and extroversion-introversion. A 246-item inventory was administered to 217 undergraduate and graduate students. An initial analysis of the 110 defensive items yielded 8 factors of which the 1st, admission of common frailties, was defined by items from the Lie, the Good Impression, the Marlowe-Crowne, the K, and the Cofer malingering scales. Items best defining 6 of the defensive factors, 6 psychopathology factors, and an extroversion scale were grouped into homogeneous subsets. The 2 main factors yielded by the factor analysis of the subtest correlations were interpreted as dimensions of extra- and intropunitiveness. (18 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Failure of Wiener and Harmon Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) subtle scales as personality descriptors and as validity indicators.

Prototypical Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) correlates in the form of spouse ratings were used as criteria to evaluate the validity of the MMPI subtle scales constructed by D. N. Wiener and Harmon (Wiener, 1948) for describing personality and for indicating profile validity. Results from a normative sample (n?=?1,682) and a marital counseling sample (n?=?369) indicated that the addition of the subtle scales to the obvious scales attenuates validity to the same degree as the addition of a random variable. Likewise, results did not support the use of an index based on MMPI subtle scales designed to detect overreporting or underreporting, of psychopathology. These findings are discussed in terms of their relevance to clinical assessment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychometric adequacy and comparability of the short and full forms of the Personality Assessment Inventory.

The 160-item short form of the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) was developed for situations in which respondents complete only the 1st half of the test. The present study evaluates the adequacy and comparability of the full and short forms of the PAI in terms of a wide range of psychometric characteristics. In all, 421 participants completed the full form as part of a neuropsychological evaluation. Results indicated slightly lower internal consistency reliability of the short compared with the full form. Group-level agreement of short and full form scales ranged from adequate to excellent. However, within-subject agreement was somewhat more variable. Low levels of within-subject agreement were strongly associated with elevated validity scale scores. The factor structures of the full and short forms showed high congruence for a 3-factor solution. These findings suggest that many scales of the short form have adequate comparability with their respective full form scales. However, low levels of reliability across less impaired ranges of the latent trait, diminished content coverage, and altered validity detection may limit the utility of some of the short form scales. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detection of back random responding: Effectiveness of MMPI-2 and Personality Assessment Inventory validity indices.

Two experiments examined the detection and effects of back random responding (BRR) on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) and the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI). Experiment 1 revealed that MMPI-2 Clinical and Content scales were relatively resistant to the effects of BRR. Fb--F ≥ 20T was the most effective index for identifying invalid protocols. Experiment 2 revealed greater susceptibility of the PAI interpretive scales to the effects of BRR and less successful detection of BRR. The most effective PAI validity index was the combined indicator, ICN ≥ at 73T or INF ≥ 75T. Clinical and empirical implications of these findings are discussed, and tentative modifications to the MMPI-2 interpretative guidelines are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)