MMPI-derived indicators of organic brain dysfunction.

For more than a decade researchers have been attempting to develop a reliable and valid way in which the MMPI can be used as an indicator of organic brain dysfunctioning. This investigation reviews the major approaches and tries all of them on a sample of 32 organic and 34 schizophrenic hospital patients. Results show that the MMPI methods used assigned patients correctly in 45 to 76% of cases. The Sc scale of the MMPI was generally superior to other scales. Most methods predicted better for women than for men. In all, the idea of making the organic-schizophrenic distinction on the basis of the MMPI appears to have been a "nice try" that ultimately did not yield the desired results.