Self-report inventory
A self-report inventory is a type of psychological test in which a person fills out a survey or questionnaire with or without the help of an investigator. Self-report inventories often ask direct questions about symptoms, behaviors, and personality traits associated with one or many mental disorders or personality types in order to easily gain insight into a patient's personality or illness. Most self-report inventories can be taken or administered within five to 15 minutes, although some, like the MMPI, can take up to three hours to fully complete.
Problems with Self-report inventories
The biggest problem with self-report inventories is that patients may exaggerate symptoms in order to make their situation seem worse, or they may under-report the severity or frequency of symptoms in order to minimize their problems. For this reason, self-report inventories should be used only for measuring for symptom change and severity and should never be solely used to diagnose a mental disorder. Clinical discretion is advised for all self-report inventories.
Many personality tests, such as the MMPI or the MBTI are designed to make it very difficult for a person to exaggerate traits and symptoms. However, these tests suffer from the inherent problems associated with personality theory and testing, in that personality is a fluid concept that can be difficult to define. Most personality inventories are based on a particular personality theory.
Popular Self-Report Inventories
- 16 PF
- Beck Anxiety Inventory
- Beck Depression Inventory
- Beck Hopelessness Scale
- California Psychological Inventory
- Geriatric Depression Scale
- Hirschfeld Mood Disorder Questionnaire
- Kuder Occupational Interest Survey
- Major Depression Inventory
- Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
- Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
References
- Aiken, L.R. (2002) "Psychological Testing and Assessment." New York: Allyn & Bacon
