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Validation of a pneumonia prognostic index using the MedisGroups Comparative Hospital Database.

PURPOSE: Our purpose was to validate a previously developed pneumonia-specific prognostic index in a large, multicenter population. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We developed a pneumonia-specific prognostic index in a prospective, multicenter study of 346 patients with clinical and radiographic evidence of pneumonia admitted to 3 Pittsburgh hospitals (the derivation cohort), and validated the index in 14,199 patients with a principal ICD-9-CM diagnosis of pneumonia admitted to 78 hospitals in the 1989 MedisGroups Comparative Hospital Database (the validation cohort). The prognostic index classified patients into five ordered risk classes based on six predictors of mortality: age greater than 65 years, pleuritic chest pain, a vital sign abnormality, altered mental status, neoplastic disease, and high-risk pneumonia etiology. Each patient in the validation cohort was assigned to a risk class by obtaining values for the index's six predictors in the MedisGroups population. The performance of the prognostic index in the derivation and validation cohorts was assessed by comparing hospital mortality rates within each of the index's five prognostic risk classes. RESULTS: The hospital mortality rate was 13.0% in the derivation cohort, and 11.1% in the validation cohort (p = 0.26). The agreement in the risk class-specific mortality rates was striking with the exception of class V: in class I, mortality was 0% in the derivation cohort versus 1% in the validation cohort; in class II, 0% versus 1.1%; class III, 10.9% versus 8.6%; class IV, 21.8% versus 26.2%; and class V, 73.7% versus 37.7%. There were no statistically significant differences in mortality rates within the first four risk classes, which represented the vast majority of patients in the derivation (94%) as well as the validation (98%) cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: These data support the generalizability of a pneumonia-specific prognostic index. This index, which performs exceptionally well in classifying low-risk patients, may help physicians identify patients with community-acquired pneumonia who could safely be managed in the ambulatory setting, or if hospitalized, the patients that could be treated with abbreviated inpatient care.

Adult↗

Development and validity testing of the neuropathy total symptom score-6: questionnaire for the study of sensory symptoms of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to develop and validate a neuropathy sensory symptom scale, the Neuropathy Total Symptom Score-6 (NTSS-6), which evaluates individual neuropathy sensory symptoms in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) in clinical trials, with the intent of distinguishing a response to therapy. METHODS: The NTSS-6 questionnaire was developed to evaluate the frequency and intensity of individual neuropathy sensory symptoms identified frequently by patients with DPN (ie, numbness and/or insensitivity; prickling and/or tingling sensation; burning sensation; aching pain and/or tightness; sharp, shooting, lancinating pain; and allodynia and/or hyperalgesia). The NTSS-6 was administered 8 times over a 1-year period to DPN patients. The NTSS-6's reliability (determined by internal consistency and test-retest reproducibility), construct validity, convergent validity, and minimally clinically important differences (MCIDs) were determined. RESULTS: The NTSS-6 was administered to a total of 205 patients at 10 centers in the United States, Canada, Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia, and the United Kingdom. Internal consistency was demonstrated at all 8 visits (Cronbach's alpha > 0.7). Test-retest reproducibility (intraclass correlation coefficient >0.9) was observed during the baseline period and at end point. Construct validity was demonstrated by statistically significant correlations between the NTSS-6 total score and the Neuropathy Symptoms and Change (NSC) score (r = 0.773-0.885, P < 0.001). Convergent validity was demonstrated by statistically significant correlations between the change in NTSS-6 total scores and the following: change in NSC scores (r = 0.519-0.708, P < 0.001); change in Neuropathy Impairment Score of the Lower Limbs and composite nerve function scores (r = 0.188-0.202, P < 0.007), and categories of the Clinical Global Impressions (r = 0.402, P < 0.001). The within- and between-groups MCIDs for the total NTSS-6 total scores were -1.26 and 0.97 points, respectively. The mean (SD) within-group MCID for all patients who improved on the Clinical Global Impression was -2.29 (3.4) points. CONCLUSIONS: The NTSS-6 provided a valid assessment of neuropathy sensory symptoms in this sample of patients with DM and DPN, which suggests that it may be useful for symptom evaluation in clinical trials and practice. The NTSS-6 showed internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and construct validity. There was also convergent validity of the scores, indicating that the NTSS-6 may be a suitable questionnaire for clinical trials that evaluate symptoms of DPN in this well-defined patient population.

Adult↗

Harmonization of strategies for the validation of quantitative analytical procedures. A SFSTP proposal--Part I.

This paper is the first part of a summary report of a new commission of the Société Française des Sciences et Techniques Pharmaceutiques (SFSTP). The main objective of this commission was the harmonization of approaches for the validation of quantitative analytical procedures. Indeed, the principle of the validation of theses procedures is today widely spread in all the domains of activities where measurements are made. Nevertheless, this simple question of acceptability or not of an analytical procedure for a given application, remains incompletely determined in several cases despite the various regulations relating to the good practices (GLP, GMP, ...) and other documents of normative character (ISO, ICH, FDA, ...). There are many official documents describing the criteria of validation to be tested, but they do not propose any experimental protocol and limit themselves most often to the general concepts. For those reasons, two previous SFSTP commissions elaborated validation guides to concretely help the industrial scientists in charge of drug development to apply those regulatory recommendations. If these two first guides widely contributed to the use and progress of analytical validations, they present, nevertheless, weaknesses regarding the conclusions of the performed statistical tests and the decisions to be made with respect to the acceptance limits defined by the use of an analytical procedure. The present paper proposes to review even the bases of the analytical validation for developing harmonized approach, by distinguishing notably the diagnosis rules and the decision rules. This latter rule is based on the use of the accuracy profile, uses the notion of total error and allows to simplify the approach of the validation of an analytical procedure while checking the associated risk to its usage. Thanks to this novel validation approach, it is possible to unambiguously demonstrate the fitness for purpose of a new method as stated in all regulatory documents.

Chemistry Techniques, Analytical↗

Validation of molecular-diagnostic techniques in the parasitological laboratory.

Diagnostic laboratories today often operate according to standard quality management procedures such as ISO/IEC 17025. This requires that only validated methods are used. Validation procedures help to document that a particular protocol used by the accredited laboratory has a guaranteed performance in that particular laboratory. Several study designs exist for validation procedures. Computer programmes are available to help with the statistical analysis of validation results. The agreement beyond chance of results obtained in the protocol that is to be validated can be compared to those achieved in an already established test (agreement). For a method that is used under routine conditions or for epidemiological studies, it is necessary to assess the diagnostic sensitivity and diagnostic specificity of the technique. These parameters can be estimated by comparing the method that needs to be validated with an existing reliable method ('gold standard'). This is done by testing a standard set of well-documented samples using both techniques in parallel. Approaches using Bayes' theorem are used to perform gold standard-free validations. Many PCR-based methods are characterised by an excellent analytical sensitivity and are thus good candidates for diagnostic tools of the required diagnostic sensitivity. However, the high level of analytical sensitivity can also make molecular techniques susceptible to cross-contamination and carry-over problems leading to false-positive results. Moreover, the presence of inhibitors can cause false-negative results. After an initial validation, test performance needs to be continuously monitored, e.g. by using combined Shewhart-CUSUM control routines, and test results compared to those obtained by other laboratories (proficiency testing).

Animals↗

A comparison of two histological validating techniques for occlusal caries.

UNLABELLED: Validation of a diagnostic technique is important to establish whether it actually measures what it is purported to measure. However, the accuracy of the validation technique per se can influence the apparent accuracy of the diagnostic technique. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to describe two alternative histological validating techniques for occlusal caries and to compare quantitative depth measurements of carious lesions taken using each method. METHODS: Thirty sections (mean thickness 0.67 mm) were cut to include two to four discrete sites in 10 freshly extracted teeth. The first histological validating technique used a microfocal X-ray unit to produce magnified high definition radiographic images of the sections or 'macroradiographs'. An image analysis system was used to make quantitative measurements of the lesions (if present) with respect to the enamel-dentine junction (EDJ). The second validating technique used a confocal microscope to image beneath the cut surface of the section. Quantitative measurements were taken from the fluorescence images of both sides of each section and a mean depth measurement calculated. RESULTS: Complete agreement was found between the two validating techniques for the subjective interpretation of the presence and extent of caries. A strong positive relationship was found between the two histological validating techniques for depth measurements made of dentine caries from the EDJ (r = 0.93, P < 0.001). Depth measurements made from the macroradiographs were greater than from the confocal fluorescence images (mean difference = 0.41 mm). CONCLUSIONS: Both validating techniques enable the identification of sound sites, those with enamel caries and dentine caries. However, quantitative assessments made with each technique could result in disagreement.

Adult↗

Psychometric and clinical tests of validity of the Japanese SF-36 Health Survey.

Cross-sectional data from a representative sample of the general population in Japan were analyzed to test the validity of Japanese SF-36 Health Survey scales as measures of physical and mental health. Results from psychometric and clinical tests of validity were compared. Principal components analyses were used to test for the hypothesized physical and mental dimensions of health and the pattern of scale correlations with those components. To test the clinical validity of SF-36 scale scores, self-reports of chronic medical conditions and the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale were used to create mutually exclusive groups differing in the severity of physical and mental conditions. The pattern of correlations between the SF-36 scales and the two empirically derived components generally confirmed hypotheses for most scales. Results of psychometric and clinical tests of validity were in agreement for the Physical Functioning, Role-Physical, Vitality, Social Functioning, and Mental Health scales. Relatively less agreement between psychometric and clinical tests of validity was observed for the Bodily Pain, General Health, and Role-Emotional scales, and the physical and mental health factor content of those scales was not consistent with hypotheses. In clinical tests of validity, the General Health, Bodily Pain, and Physical Functioning scales were the most valid scales in discriminating between groups with and without a severe physical condition. Scales that correlated highest with mental health in the components analysis (Mental Health and Vitality) also were most valid in discriminating between groups with and without depression. The results of this study provide preliminary interpretation guidelines for all SF-36 scales, although caution is recommended in the interpretation of the Role-Emotional, Bodily Pain, and General Health scales pending further studies in Japan.

Adult↗

Development and validation of a French obesity-specific quality of life questionnaire: Quality of Life, Obesity and Dietetics (QOLOD) rating scale.

OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate a new health related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire specific to obesity and its management. METHODS: This study was in two parts. The first (Study 1) consisted of the creation of a new tool derived from the American "Impact of Weight on Quality of Life Questionnaire" (IWQOL, 74 items) by adding to it a 17 items specific complementary module. This initial questionnaire (91 items) was reduced so as to obtain a questionnaire adapted to socio-cultural factors of obesity and dietary weight management in France. The objective of the second (Study 2) was to validate this final questionnaire by evaluating its psychometric properties: construction validity, internal reliability, concurrent validity in relation to a generic questionnaire, the SF-12, clinical validity by studying the effects of age, gender and body mass index (BMI), and reproducibility. RESULTS: The results of Study 1, obtained in 128 obese patients (mean age: 42.5 12.1, BMI: 34.5 2.8 kg/m2, women: 83.6%) enabled reduction of the 91 questionnaire items to 36, grouped into 5 dimensions: physical impact, psycho-social impact, sex life, comfort with food and diet experience. Two hundred and twelve patients (mean age: 43.3 12.2, BMI: 35.8 7.4 kg/m2, women: 77.7%) were included in Study 2, among whom 75 filled out the questionnaire twice at a one week interval. Analyses enabled verification of the construction validity and internal reliability (Cronbach alpha > 0.7) of the questionnaire as well as its concurrent validity in relation to summarized SF-12 scores and its clinical validity. The "physical impact" dimension was significantly influenced by BMI and age, the dimensions "sex life" and "diet experience" by the factors gender and BMI, while "psycho-social impact" was influenced by the 3 factors cited. Its reproducibility was also deemed satisfactory (intra-class correlation coefficient > 0.8). CONCLUSION: This new questionnaire, called the "Echelle Qualité de Vie, Obésité et Diététique (EQVOD)"/"Quality of Life, Obesity and Dietetics (QOLOD)" rating scale is sufficiently reliable and reproducible to be used in clinical practice. It is a simple tool adapted to socio-cultural factors of obesity in France, enabling taking into account of the effects of dietary management on the HRQOL of obese people.

Activities of Daily Living↗

Validity concerns and usefulness of student ratings of instruction.

The validity of student rating measures of instructional quality was severely questioned in the 1970s. By the early 1980s, however, most expert opinion viewed student rating measures as valid and as worthy of widespread use. In retrospect, older discriminant-validity concerns were not so much resolved as they were displaced from research attention by accumulating evidence for convergent validity. This article introduces a Current Issues section that gives new attention to validity concerns associated with student ratings. The section's 4 articles deal, respectively, with (a) conceptual structure (are student ratings unidimensional or multidimensional?), (b) convergent validity (how well do ratings correlate with other indicators of effective teaching?), (c) discriminant validity (are ratings influenced by factors other than teaching effectiveness?), and (d) consequential validity (are ratings used effectively in personnel development and evaluation?). Although all 4 articles favor the use of ratings, they disagree on controversial points associated with interpretation and use of ratings data.

Consumer Behavior↗

Kinesthetic aftereffect and personality: a case study of issues involved in construct validation.

Kinesthetic Aftereffect (KAE), once a promising personality index, has been abandoned by many investigators because of poor retest reliability and intermittent validity. In challenging this current consensus, we argue that (a) first-session KAE is valid; (b) poor retest reliability simply reflects later-session bias; (c) hence, multisession studies should not be used to assess validity without taking this bias into account. Those recent studies which failed to support KAE validity were each multisession in design. If our bias contention is correct, these studies should be ignored, and the claim of intermittent validity is thus rebutted. Reanalysis of the most recent major multisession, nonsupportive validity study indicates (a) Session 1 validity, (b) later-session bias, and (c) later-session valdiity when multisession scores are combined to avoid bias. Thus, KAE validly measures personality.

Humans↗

Effect of relative stimulus validity: learning or performance deficit?

This research examined whether the effect of relative stimulus validity (A.R. Wagner, F.A. Logan, K. Haberlandt, & T. Price, 1968) is a deficit of acquisition or performance. Experiment 1 demonstrated the relative validity effect using rats in a conditioned lick suppression. task. A target cue trained in the presence of another cue that was a more valid predictor of reinforcement exhibited less behavioral control than a target cue that had been trained in the presence of an equally valid predictor of reinforcement. In Experiment 2, the more valid predictor was extinguished after training. This manipulation increased responding to the target cue, thereby attenuating the effect of low relative validity. This outcome suggests that the relative validity effect is a performance deficit. In addition, recovery from the relative validity deficit was specific to the particular target stimulus that was trained in the presence of the subsequently extinguished cue.

Animals↗

On the complexity of quantifying construct validity.

To validate a measure of a construct is to validate a theory: The process includes theory specification, theory elaboration, choice of methods, choice of research design, reliance on necessary auxiliary theories, and empirical observation. Evaluating the success of the process is likely to be enhanced through quantification. To date, scientists have quantified the final step of empirical observation, but earlier steps in the validation process appear more difficult to measure. In this issue, D. Westen and R. Rosenthal (2005) emphasize that threats to validity are often methodological ones that precede empirical observation. Yet, their earlier attempt to quantify construct validity focused only on the final, empirical observation step of the process. For that reason, it can produce positive results despite real theoretical and methodological threats to validity. Nonetheless, the laudable attempt by these distinguished authors to quantify construct validity reminds us of the complexity of the construct validation process.

Humans↗

Validity of a performance assessment of activities of daily living for people with developmental disabilities.

BACKGROUND: Since clients with different types of developmental disabilities often experience difficulties in activities of daily living (ADL), it is critical that assessments of ADL are evaluated in order to ensure that one can make valid judgements based on the results of the appraisal. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the validity of a specific performance assessment instrument, the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS), when used by occupational therapists with clients with developmental disabilities. Unlike global ADL assessments, the AMPS is used not only to evaluate the level of ADL dependence, but also to estimate the quality of each specific action performed when a person is performing ADL tasks. METHODS: Data were gathered from 1724 participants with different developmental disabilities, including intellectual disability (ID), cerebral palsy and spina bifida. Many-Facet Rasch (MFR) analysis was used to examine person-response validity, and task and item scale validity. RESULTS: Goodness-of-fit statistics showed that the tasks and items had acceptable scale validity. The participants had acceptable person-response validity on the ADL motor scale, but had slightly lower than expected levels of person-response validity on the ADL process scale. The results indicate that clients with more severe forms of ID may have a higher proportion of different performance profiles in ADL than is expected by the MFR model of the AMPS. Since the proportion of participants who did not meet the criteria was only 3% lower than expected and in accordance with other studies, the difference may not be clinically meaningful. Otherwise, the results indicated that the AMPS is a valid tool when used with clients with developmental disabilities. CONCLUSIONS: Further research is needed to evaluate the use of the AMPS in clinical assessment and intervention planning for this group of clients.

Activities of Daily Living↗

Are medical postgraduate certification processes valid? A systematic review of the published evidence.

OBJECTIVE: To collate the published works on validation of assessments used in postgraduate medical certification. DESIGN: Systematic review of original papers on reliability and validity of assessments used in medical postgraduate certification. SETTING: Medical and education research databases. RESULTS: Fifty-five papers were identified from 1985 to 2000. A wide range of approaches to validation were employed. Inter-rater reliability and internal consistency were the most reported foci for validation. There were just two papers on consequential validity, and only a few on construct validity. These two forms of validity are considered central in recent general education writing. The majority of papers were from general and family practice. There was a noticeable lack of papers from the UK Royal Colleges (except the Royal College of General Practitioners), despite 5 years of the new unified grade and the renewed emphasis on the role of the Royal Colleges in setting assessment criteria. CONCLUSIONS: There is a relative scarcity of published papers on validation of assessment for postgraduate medical certification considering the influence these high stakes processes have on doctors career progression and employment opportunities. General and family practice institutions in a number of English speaking countries have set an example to others, by showing that rigour and transparency in assessment development and implementation can be reflected in publication.

Certification↗

Pilot study of the validity and reliability of brief fruit, juice and vegetable screeners among inner city African-American boys and 17 to 20 year old adults.

OBJECTIVE: Compare the validity and reliability of a one-week fruit, juice and vegetable (FJV) food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) that does not require averaging in response categories and one-week food recognition form (FRF) against three to four 24-hour dietary recalls (24hdr) among mostly African-American boys and 17 to 20 year-old adults for possible use in subsequent intervention studies. DESIGN: In Study One, the FFQ was administered to 40 boys in four Boy Scout (BS) troops on two occasions separated by two weeks. The FRF was administered to 36 boys in four other BS troops after school on six school days, covering seven consecutive days. All these boys completed four 24hdr, including one Sunday. In Study Two, 56 17 to 20 year-old adults completed the FFQ during telephone interviews on two occasions two weeks apart. In between, they completed three 24hdr by telephone interview on one weekend and two weekdays. SUBJECTS/SETTING: Participants in Study One were members of eight urban BS troops, and in Study Two were high school (HS) seniors and recent HS graduates. BS data were collected at times scheduled for troop meetings or immediately after school. The young adult group completed telephone interviews in the evenings and on weekends. MAIN MEASURES: This research compared a FJV FFQ and a FJV FRF (incorporating the same 24 foods) against three to four 24hdr conducted using NDS software from the University of Minnesota. STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Descriptive statistics, intraclass correlations, Spearman correlations, corrections for attenuation. RESULTS: The first FFQ provided substantially higher mean consumption estimates for both groups. The FFQ had moderate reliability across assessments and moderate validity coefficients for fruit and total FJV combined for the BS sample. The FRF had higher validity coefficients for juice. The FFQ had moderate reliability and poor validity among the young adult group. Correction for measurement error in the 24hdr substantially increased validity coefficients to high levels for BS fruit and total FJV and to moderate levels for the HS groups, with some exceptions. APPLICATIONS/CONCLUSIONS: FFQ more validly assessed fruit and combined FJV consumption for the nine to 14 year-old BS but overestimated mean values. FRF means were closer to those of the 24hdr and were more valid for assessing juice consumption. The FFQ had moderate validity among the young adult group but overestimated consumption. Further research is needed on simpler methods of reporting diet in these age groups.

Adolescent↗

The Geriatric Depression Scale and the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia. A validity study.

The study is a validation study of two psychogeriatric depression rating scales, The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD). The sensitivity and specificity, and the convergent and criterion validity of the two scales as well as the inter-rater reliability of the CSDD are reported. Two independent clinicians using the ICD-10 for depression and dementia, the Clinical Global Impression (CGI), the Hamilton Depression rating scale 17-items and the Mini-Mental-State Examination (MMSE), interviewed each patient or control subject. One hundred forty-five persons of 65 years or more of age were included, 73 were depressed only, 36 depressed and demented; 36 persons were control subjects, 11 of these were demented. The inter-rater reliabilities were high or very high equalling perfect correlation. There was very high convergent validity between the screening tools and the severity scales; the shorter versions of the GDS (15-, 10- or four-item version) had lower though still almost perfect correlations. The criterion validity in the total population showed the CSDD as the better scale with sensitivity and specificity of 93% and 97% with a cut-off value of > or =6. The GDS versions had sensitivities and specificities ranging from 82% to 90% and 75% to 94% respectively with cut-off values > or =9, 4, 3 and 1. The CSDD retained its validity and specificity as a screening tool for depression in a population of demented, while the GDS versions all diminished in validity. The GDS and the CSDD are both valid screening tools for depression in the elderly; however, the CSDD alone seems to be equally valid in populations of demented and non-demented.

Aged↗

Conceptual and statistical issues in the validation of analytic dilution assays for pharmaceutical applications.

The discovery, research, and development of a pharmaceutical product relies on the availability of validated assays for assessing product characteristics and drug effects in vivo and in vitro. Development of a validated assay is a multifaceted activity that provides many interesting challenges for bioanalytical chemists and statisticians. In this paper, the similarity condition for fundamental validity of an analytic dilution assay is reviewed as a basic concept underlying the validation of assays for pharmaceutical applications. The distinction between the validity and the acceptability of an assay is considered in terms of the characteristics evaluated during four stages of validation. Recent guidelines on the validation of analytical procedures published by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are appraised from a statistical perspective, and statistical issues in the validation process are discussed.

Chemistry, Pharmaceutical↗

Construct and ecological validity of the Occupational Therapy Adult Perceptual Screening Test (OT-APST).

This paper reports on the construct validity (scale design and convergent validity) and ecological validity of the Occupational Therapy Adult Perceptual Screening Test (OT-APST). The performance of 208 participants following stroke on the OT-APST and a reference tool (either the Loewenstein Occupational Therapy Cognitive Assessment (LOTCA) or the LOTCA-Geriatric version (LOTCA-G)) was compared. The OT-APST performance of the stroke sample was compared with a healthy normative sample (n = 356). The relationship between the OT-APST performance and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) score of the participants following stroke was also examined. Factor analysis and internal consistency results supported the scale design of the OT-APST. Significant correlations between the performance of the participants following stroke on the OT-APST and the reference tool supported the convergent validity of the OT-APST. The ability of the OT-APST to separate the two participant groups provided further evidence of its construct validity. Significant correlations between OT-APST and FIM scores supported the ecological validity of this tool. This study shows that the OT-APST is an ecologically valid tool with demonstrated construct validity in the assessment of visual perception.

Adult↗

Examination of the new MMPI-2 Response Bias Scale (Gervais): relationship with MMPI-2 validity scales.

Validity scales were recently developed to improve assessment of symptom validity beyond original MMPI-2 validity scales. In an initial study, the Response Bias Scale (RBS; Gervais, 2005) was developed based upon non-head-injury claimant performances on a cognitive effort measure, the Word Memory Test (WMT). The present study examined relationships of the RBS with numerous MMPI-2 validity scales in a sample of 211 participants with secondary gain (SG) or no secondary gain (NSG). Of the validity scales observed, RBS yielded the largest effect size difference between groups (d = .65), followed closely by FBS (d = .60) and the L-scale (d = .51). Overall, RBS correlated most significantly (r = .74, p < .001) with FBS, but also showed significant correlations with most other validity scales for both groups. RBS further demonstrated significant correlations (p < .001) with all clinical scales except for Mf. Findings suggest that RBS and FBS may represent a similar construct of symptom validity, and may outperform other MMPI-2 validity scales in discriminating SG and NSG groups. Findings provide preliminary support for use of RBS within the forensic context.

Bias↗