The Development and Validation of a Heroin Addiction Scale with the MMPI

Abstract

A 57 item Heroin (He) scale was developed by comparing MMP1 responses of 63 incarcerated, adult, male heroin addicts (HAs) and 56 similar non-addicts (NAs). In a cross-validation study with 160 HAs and 160 NAs the He scale correctly identified 83% of the former and 81% of the latter. In a second validation study the He scale correctly identified 81% of the 63 adolescent HAs and 70% of 56 adolescent NAs. A limited follow-up of 10 Caucasian adolescent NAs of the latter group indicated that 4 of 6 who had been “incorrectly identified” as HAs by the He scale had begun using heroin, while none of 4 correctly identified NAs contacted had begun using heroin. Analyses of variance indicated that addiction status and ethnicity had significant effects on He scores (P <.01). Further research is suggested to determine the predictive validity of the He scale.