Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory

noun

, Psychology.

1. a widely used test designed to identify configurations of personality traits in normal persons and to study the personality patterns occurring in various types of mental illness. : MMPI

Word History and Origins

Origin of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory¹

First recorded in 1940–45; after the University of Minnesota, where it was developed

Example Sentences

The Rorschach inkblot test was in use, as were the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, a 567-item questionnaire, and the Thematic Apperception Test, developed by the Harvard psychologist Henry Murray.

From New York Times

Many questions appeared to be derived from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, which is designed to assess personality traits and psychopathology.

From New York Times

Tests like the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory and Rorschach are prone to over-pathologizing subjects, misidentifying them as addicts or abusers.

From Washington Post

One of the oldest surveys in assessing personality traits and psychopathology is the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, which dates to the Great Depression and remains in use today.

From Washington Post

But my over-all favorite was the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, which first appeared, in 1943, as a box of flash cards with true-false statements written on them.

From The New Yorker