A validity scale, in
psychological testing
Psychological testing is the administration of psychological tests. Psychological tests are administered by trained evaluators. A person's responses are evaluated according to carefully prescribed guidelines. Scores are thought to reflect individ ...
, is a scale used in an attempt to measure reliability of responses, for example with the goal of detecting
defensiveness,
malingering
Malingering is the fabrication, feigning, or exaggeration of physical or psychological symptoms designed to achieve a desired outcome, such as relief from duty or work.
Malingering is not a medical diagnosis, but may be recorded as a "focus of c ...
, or careless or random responding.
For example, the
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) is a standardized psychometric test of adult personality and psychopathology. Psychologists and other mental health professionals use various versions of the MMPI to help develop treatment ...
has
validity scales to measure questions not answered; client "faking good"; client "faking bad" (in first half of test); denial/evasiveness; client "faking bad" (in last half of test); answering similar/opposite question pairs inconsistently; answering questions all true/all false; honesty of test responses/not faking good or bad; "appearing excessively good"; frequency of presentation in clinical setting; and overreporting of
somatic symptoms. The
Personality Assessment Inventory
Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI), developed by Leslie Morey (1991, 2007), is a self-report 344-item personality test that assesses a respondent's personality and psychopathology. Each item is a statement about the respondent that the resp ...
has validity scales to measure inconsistency (the degree to which respondents answer similar questions in the same way), infrequency (the degree to which respondents rate extremely bizarre or unusual statements as true),
positive impression (the degree to which respondents describe themselves in a positive light), and
negative impression (the degree to which respondents describe themselves in a negative light). The
Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking has two validity scales (Confusion and Defensiveness). The