Million Clinical Multiaxial Inventory Essay

The Million Clinical Multiaxial Inventory--III (MCMI-III) is one of the most commonly used clinical tools for measuring personality traits and disorders (Hesse, Guldager, & Linneberg, 2012; Million, Davis, & Million, 2001; Zennaro, et al., 2013). In fact, the MCMI-III is also the one of the most researched psychological assessments behind the Rorschach and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) (Million et al., 2001). The MCMI-III was especially designed to measure personality traits, in order to evaluate personality dimensions comprehensively. When compared to the other leading personality tests like MMPI and the Rorschach, the MCMI-III appears to incorporate theoretical developments and changes in the classification system

The test has since been updated twice to correspond better with the updated version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) (Million, et al., 2001). The most current version of the test was published in 1994, with the purpose to provide an assessment that parallels the DSM-IV-related personality disorders and clinical syndromes (Million, et al., 2001). The MCMI-III is made up of 175 objective, true/false, self-report items that make up unique diagnostic categories that were specified and operationally defined. These diagnostic categories consist of 24 clinical scales, which are grouped into categories of personality and psychopathology to reflect the DSM-IV’s distinction between Axis I and Axis II. For instance, Axis I consists of the most prominent syndromes in clinical work, while Axis II is comprised of the personality dimensions that have been a part of the DSM, since the third revision (Million et al., 1997). Furthermore, the scales are grouped according to the severity of the psychopathology, but assessed independently depending on the level of severity (i.e. mild, moderate, and severe). With having 24 clinical scales and 175 test items, there is subtest overlap, which may suggest an interaction between long-standing characterological

Examinees can be either English or Spanish speakers and must be over the age of 18 with an 8th grade reading level. However, the MCMI-III should be administered with caution to populations that are noticeably different from the standardized sample, which only includes a clinical population. International translated versions of the MCMI have also been adapted in languages including: Chinese, Danish, Dutch, Flemish, German, Hebrew, Italian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, and Thai. The popularity of the MCMI-III may be contributable to its simple administration procedure. The MCMI-III uses a paper-and-pencil, self-report method that requires minimal instruction during administration and only takes 20-30 minutes to complete (Million et al., 1997). The cost to purchase the hand-scoring starter kit that includes: the manual, hand-scoring user’s guide, 10 test booklets, 50 answer sheets, 50 worksheets, 50 profile forms and answer keys was $406.95 in 2015. In addition, the Q-global Interpretive Report Starter Kit that includes: the manual, three answer sheets, one test booklet, and three Q-global administrations was