Personality characteristics of juvenile delinquents: Comparison of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent scale scores in sex offenders and non-sex offenders

Sex offences in adolescents are among offences that impose considerable material and social costs. Thus, it is imperative to identify the characteristics of adolescent offenders. The purpose of this study is to compare the validity and clinical scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory- adolescence (MMPI-A) in sexual and non-sexual juvenile delinquents.
This causal-comparative study was carried out in the Correction Center of Tehran, Iran, in 2014. Numbers of 86 non-sexual and 20 sexual juvenile delinquents were selected through convenience sampling. Both groups filled out the MMPI-A scale. Multiple analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to analyze data.
The mean scores for all subscales were higher in sexual delinquents; however, this difference was only significant for clinical subscale of depression (P=0.03) and validity subscale of in-frequency type 1 (P=0.04) subscales.
In most of the MMPI-A subscales (those that describe personal characteristics and emotional adjustment) sexual juvenile delinquents were not significantly different from nonsexual juvenile delinquents. However, sexual delinquents scored higher in subscales which show lower overall life satisfaction, hopelessness, and unhappiness. These results can be used in further assessment and treatment of this group of delinquents.