ORGANIZED CRIME
MANAGEMENT IN GOVERNMENT
PART FOUR
by
HOW MENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL
WORK USES LOGICAL FALLACIES TO CREATE JUNK SCIENCE EXPLOITED BY ORGANIZED CRIME
IN GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND PROGRAMS
If you think you see a rattle snake coiled up in the
middle of your bed, don’t assume you are delusional until you hit it a few
times with a stick and it looks good and dead. Bubba Ramdas, revered guru from Southern India.
Leaping into the snake pit1,2,3,4,5
In Part Three, two broad categories of interacting
logical fallacies were identified and described, Fallacies of Relevance and
Fallacies of Presumption. There are
three types of Fallacies of Relevance: (1) Appeal to Authority, (2) Appeal to
Ignorance, and (3) Appeal to Emotion.
An intellectually honest person making an argument will
appeal to reason, facts, or the truth.
Bear in mind that an argument is a conclusion supported by reasoning
documented by evidence. Citing a
qualified authority with relevant expertise as evidence to support a conclusion
should be distinguished from appealing to the alleged authority of someone
without qualifications and relevant expertise who has expressed a personal
opinion on a matter. A qualified
authority in one area may have personal opinions about matters outside their
area of expertise. The personal opinion
of an authority outside their area of expertise is no more or less valid than
the personal opinion of anyone else. An
intellectually dishonest person will attempt to justify the use of logical
fallacies by alleging that: (1) “truth” is relative, (2) “truth” does not
exist, or (3) that “truth” is completely subjective.
If any or all the propositions that truth is relative,
non-existent, or completely subjective are accepted, then it becomes impossible
to tell a lie. Anything one might put
forward as a true statement would have equal validity. This mental gymnastic is how intellectually
dishonest mental health and social work practitioners justify to themselves
falsifying reports and testimony (that is if they have sufficient conscience to
be bothered by lying in the first place).
One term for this belief system is “moral relativism.”
The types of Fallacies of Presumption are outlined below:
A.
OVERLOOKING THE FACTS
1.
Sweeping Generalization
2.
Hasty Generalization
3.
Bifurcation
B.
EVADING THE FACTS
1.
Begging the Question
2.
Question-Begging Epithets
3.
Complex Question
4.
Special Pleading
C.
DISTORTING THE FACTS
1.
False Analogy
2.
False Cause
3.
Irrelevant Thesis
[NOTE: For an explanation and examples of each type
of logical fallacy, please see the first installment of PART III.]
I. Fallacies of Relevance are a favored
and powerful tool of political extremists and organized criminals operating in
the child protection and mental health systems. When combined with Fallacies
of Presumption, Fallacies of
Relevance frequently overwhelm the abilities of the average person to
determine that they are being bamboozled.
[The term “bamboozled” comes from a form of torture in which the soles
of the feet are beaten with bamboo until the person complies with the wishes of
the torturer.]
A. An example of what may be the most despicable and
destructive use of the logical fallacy Appeal
to Authority in human history can be found in the mental health
profession. The manual used by
psychologists and psychiatrists to diagnose mental disorders is constructed by
having members of the mental health professions propose and vote on the “disorders”
that will be included in the manual.
The
logical fallacy is that “x number of psychologists and psychiatrists can not be
wrong,” x being whatever number of votes serve as the threshold of acceptance
for inclusion in the manual. The
resulting system is subject to blatant economic self-interest and political
influence determining what is listed as a “mental disorder.”
An
excellent example is the history of homosexuality. Homosexuality was, for several years, listed as a “mental
disorder.” The homosexual community
eventually gained sufficient political power to have homosexuality removed from
the list of “mental disorders.”
For
“mental disorders” included in the diagnostic manual to have any foundation in
science, the diagnosis would have to be based upon a specified physiological or
neurological disorder linked to observed behavior by a causal
relationship. A diagnostic manual based
on valid cause-and-effect science would specify the appropriate chemical,
physiological, or objective technological tools (x-ray, CATSCAN, etc.) which
would detect the presence of the physiological disorder that produces specific
involuntary behavior and identify an effective treatment to correct the
disorder.
If
the number of people who believed something was true determined reality, all
the uglier aspects of the human condition, such as war, could be rapidly solved
by the expedient of convincing a majority to believe a problem, like war, did
not exist. Under the current selection
system for identifying the types of “mental disorders” that exist, any
correspondence to reality is strictly coincidental.
B. The most malicious use of Appeal to Ignorance is the contrived use of Legislated secrecy
shielding juvenile courts and the child protection system to conceal gross
negligence, gross incompetence, perjury, falsification of records, and the
systematic exploitation, neglect and abuse of children held in state
custody. On two occasions, the Author
received evidence that children held in state custody were being abused. A complaint was filed in each case, as
required by law. In the first instance,
the caseworker was fired. In the second
instance, about two years after the first, the Author was required to bring to
an interview by an Arkansas State Police Child Abuse Investigator, copies of
his college degrees, copies of the photographic evidence, and was questioned
for over an hour about what qualifications and expertise he had in child abuse,
medicine, law, and other areas that would qualify him to question the actions
of the Arkansas Department of Human Services Division of Children and Family.
Services. Such conduct by “child abuse
investigators” has no other purpose than intimidating anyone who might have the
audacity to allege children under State custody are being abused or
exploited. Those running the child
exploitation system are constantly improving their defenses.
The
mechanism now in place to investigate complaints of children abused or
neglected in Arkansas State custody is designed to require complainants to
produce information and possess knowledge the average person will not have. This is nothing but a sophisticated use of Appeal to Ignorance. By making acceptance of the merits of a
complaint conditional on the Author having knowledge irrelevant to whether or
not abuse actually occurred, the State Police Child Abuse Investigator combined
Appeal to Ignorance with the Fallacy of Relevance, Irrelevant Thesis
as justification for dismissing the possibility that a child was abused by
foster parents while in State custody.
C. Appeal to
Emotion is the goose that continually lays golden eggs for the alliance of
criminals and political extremists controlling the child protection system to
meet their respective goals. With the
exception of a small percentage of perverse individuals, most people are horrified
by the thought of children being molested or intentionally abused by
adults. Unscrupulous individuals have
used this, and the reluctance of politicians to appear to support child
molesters and abusers, to exploit the child protection system. Using
the specter of overlooking an abused or molested child somewhere and the slogan
“If we must err, we must err on the side of the child” (a complex question
logical fallacy), laws have been enacted removing the presumption of innocence
in child abuse allegation investigations and giving mental health and social
work practitioners virtual control of peoples lives.
Mental
health and social workers who have successfully ensconced themselves as
purported experts in child abuse related cases can obtain payment through court
orders, claims filed with State Crime Victim Reparation Boards, insurance
claims for therapy and lucrative state contracts to evaluate children and
parents drawn into Children and Family Services.
In
his capacity as an expert on detecting and documenting pseudo science, science
fraud, and structural corruption, the Author accompanied a client to observe
and record a Court ordered psychological evaluation. The Arkansas Division of Children and Family Services contracted
psychiatric evaluator refused to proceed with the evaluation, stating “No one
is going to scrutinize my work.”
This
is an example of the Special Pleading
logical fallacy, which is a rampant attitude among psychologists, psychiatrists
and social workers, that they are a special class of people who should not be
questioned because of their good intentions or special insight abilities which
allow them to do what others, in their view, can not. Some have claimed to be infallible or unaware of ever having made
an error in their entire career. The
latter is because the consequences of their errors do not adversely impact
their own lives. Such “experts” do not
have to serve the prison terms of innocent persons wrongfully convicted of
child abuse or molestation on their “expert” testimony that they are guilty.
Applied junk science:
Logical fallacies and psychological testing6
II.
Fallacies of Presumption:
Logical analysis of the interpretive
structure of psychological tests, such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
Inventory Test II (MMPI), demonstrate the systematic use of logical fallacies
which produce pseudo scientific “psychological evaluations.” The MMPI contains 567 forced choice
statements to which the person being “evaluated” must select “TRUE” or “FALSE”
in response.
If such tests were valid diagnostic
tools, each statement would detect a specific symptom produced by a specific
physiological dysfunction. By comparing
the pattern of responses to patterns of symptoms, a physiological disorder
could be identified, in the same way a physician looks for symptoms in a
physical examination.
The physician systematically detects
the presence or absence of symptoms. A
physician’s methods are based upon cause-and-effect relationships between
physiological disorders and the symptoms they produce.
The MMPI items fall into two broad
categories, physiological and cognitive police items. Table 1 reports the classification of all 567 MMPI items based
upon the type of information required to respond to each item. Only 15% of the items (86) require
information about an individual’s physiology.
Cognitive police items are based
upon the classification of thoughts, ideas and beliefs as acceptable or
unacceptable. Such classifications are
arbitrary and represent the opinions of those who constructed the MMPI
interpretive structure as to what individuals should or should not think. Thoughts adverse to those valued by the test
builders are labeled as indicators of “mental illness.”
MMPI-2 ITEM CONTENT ANALYSIS
NUMBER OF ITEMS |
PERCENT |
STATEMENT CLASSIFICATIONS |
86 |
15.0 |
Diagnosis
of physiological dysfunctions |
481 |
85.0 |
Cognitive
Police Items |
38 |
6.70 |
Cultural conformity |
21 |
3.70 |
Critical thinking |
1 |
.18 |
Gender |
39 |
6.88 |
Life experience |
67 |
11.82 |
Life style |
71 |
12.52 |
Personal belief |
45 |
7.94 |
Personal preferences |
18 |
3.17 |
Political thought |
9 |
1.59 |
Religious thought |
124 |
21.87 |
Social relations |
48 |
8.47 |
Subjective value judgment |
567 |
100.0 |
TOTAL |
Table 1
The Minnesota Multiphasic
Personality Inventory II, and similar tests, are flawed by fallacies of
presumption. Incorporating items that
do not detect the presence or absence of symptoms produced by physiological disorders
introduces irrelevance into the interpretation of responses.
A. Overlooking
the Facts:
1. Sweeping
Generalization: Item 1 on the MMPI
is “I like mechanics magazines.” The
interpretive structure for this item actually incorporates two sweeping
generalizations. A person who selects
“TRUE” scores no points on any of the psychological scales. The sweeping generalization is, “All persons
who like mechanics magazines have no psychological problems.” A person who selects “FALSE” receives one
point on four different scales. The
sweeping generalization is, “All persons who do not like mechanics magazines
have four psychological problems.”
Other MMPI items also incorporate sweeping generalizations.
2. Hasty
Generalization: The MMPI is
supported by layered and interacting logical fallacies built upon the hasty
generalization that statistical associations are sufficient to support the
entire interpretive structure. Sir Karl
Popper, author of the standards for identifying science for legal purposes
adopted by the United States Supreme Court in 1993, has identified the
fundamental problem in asserting probability as a basis for “scientific”
conclusions.
To sum up point (a). Since we aim in science at high content, we do not aim at a high
probability.
(b)
The severity of possible tests of a statement or a theory depends (among other
factors) on the precision of its assertions and upon its predictive power; in
other words, upon its informative content (which increases with these two
factors). This may be expressed by
saying that the degree of testability of
a statement increases with its content.
But the better a statement can be tested, the better it can be
confirmed, i.e. attested by its tests.
Thus we find that the opportunities of confirming a statement, and
accordingly the degree of its confirmability or corroboration or attestability,
increase with its testability, and with its content.
To sum up point (b). Since we want a high degree
of confirmation (or corroboration), we need a high content (and thus a low
absolute probability).
Those
who identify confirmation with probability must believe that a high degree of
probability is desirable. They
implicitly accept the rule: 'Always choose the most probable hypothesis!'
. (2)
In taking up the challenge to construct a better definition of confirmation, I
wish to say first that I do not believe that it is possible to give a
completely satisfactory definition. My
reason is that a theory which has been tested with great ingenuity and with the
sincere attempt to refute it will have a higher degree of confirmation than one
which has been tested with laxity;"
(Sir Karl Popper, Conjectures and
Refutations: The Growth of Scientific Knowledge, 1989. p. 287-8, emphasis
added)
Asserting
statistical association, or a probability statement, between an alleged
psychological disorder and a non-diagnostic statement on the MMPI is
insufficient to justify any claim that interpretation of the response is
“scientific.”
3. Bifurcation: The bifurcation fallacy is incorporated into the MMPI in the 198
items (35%) which have scales associated with both the “TRUE” and “FALSE”
responses. Item 16 on the MMPI is bifurcated
with five (5) scales associated with the “TRUE” response and the L Scale
(lying) associated with the “FALSE” response.
16. Once in a
while I think of things too bad to talk about.
TRUE (5) FALSE (1)
S6 Paranoia
(Pa) L Scale
S7
Psychasthenia (Pt)
S8
Schizophrenia (Sc)
SS College
Maladj. (Mt)
SS P-Trau.
Str. Dis. (PK)
Because Item 16 does not have face
validity (the response interpretations are not based upon the content of the
question, but statistical associations hidden from the person required to
respond) the logical structure of the real question is:
16. Are you a
OR b?
(a) (b)
S6 Paranoia
(Pa) L Scale
S7
Psychasthenia (Pt)
S8
Schizophrenia (Sc)
SS College
Maladj. (Mt)
SS P-Trau.
Str. Dis. (PK)
The
bifurcated question in statement form is:
"Are you a maladjusted paranoid college
student with psychasthenia, schizophrenia and post traumatic stress disorder or
are you lying?"
This
is what has been passing for “scientific” psychological evaluation accepted by
the judicial system.
B. Evading
the Facts:
1. Begging
the Question: As Sir Karl Popper
has pointed out, statistical associations do not establish a scientific
foundation. In “validating” the
individual items contained in the MMPI, multiple statistical associations were
put forth as a basis for establishing diagnostic value. Statistical associations between MMPI items
and specific scales were based upon wives’ opinions about their husbands,
surveys of air line pilots, surveys of students, and mental patients who were
diagnosed by experts (also an example of circular reasoning).
Simply
surveying different populations to establish numerous statistical associations
to cite, does not overcome the basic fallacy begging the question. The strongest method for establishing a
relationship between an MMPI item and a “psychological disorder,” would be to
establish a causal relationship between a specific physiological dysfunction
and selecting a specific response to an item.
If no causal relationship exists, then the MMPI item has no diagnostic
value.
2. Question-Begging
Epithets: The existence of “lying
scales” is an excellent example. If
causal relationships existed between MMPI items and specific physiological
disorders, lying would not be possible or relevant. The nature of a causal relationship is that x follows y on all
occasions. If a tumor at a specific
location in the brain caused a person to answer “FALSE” to MMPI item 1, then
every person who had a tumor at that exact location, would select “FALSE.”
The
function of “lying scales” is to label and dismiss persons who question the
MMPI items or fail to select responses to all items. To validate the efficacy of the MMPI, responses must be selected
for all items. Since responding to all
MMPI items ensures positive scores on some scales, it constitutes “proof” that
the MMPI detects the existence of psychological problems and that all people
have psychological problems (another unproved sweeping generalization).
3. Complex
Question: The structure of the MMPI
presumes an affirmative answer to the prior question, “Do all persons have
psychological problems?” With the
assumed “yes” answer, the only proper use for the MMPI is to distinguish which
psychological problems an individual has.
It is not the purpose of the MMPI, and tests constructed in the same
manner, to determine IF the
individual being evaluated has psychological problems. The answer is already “YES.”
4. Special
Pleading: The best example remains
the assertion by psychology and psychiatry practitioners that they should not
be held to the same standards of science as other professions. Special pleading exists in the MMPI
foundation in the use of statistical associations rather than cause-and-effect
relationships. Being granted this
exception has retarded their development as real science practitioners and may
ultimately be responsible for the destruction of the standing psychiatrists,
psychologists, and social workers currently have.
C. Distorting
the Facts:
1. False
Analogy:
Mixing
MMPI items that require physiological information to respond with cognitive
police items, falsely implies that cognitive police items have physiological
diagnostic value.
2. False
Cause: Constructing a “diagnostic”
scale, such as the Paranoia Scale, from MMPI items which have high statistical
correlation with a “psychological” disorder, does not establish a causal
relationship. In fact, the use of
multiple items to construct a scale violates a fundamental requirement for
establishing a causal relationship. If
a causal relationship existed, every paranoid individual would select all item
responses included in the Paranoid Scale on every occasion it was administered
until the physiological condition was altered to remove the paranoid state.
3. Irrelevant
Thesis: Two of the stranger scales
are the True Response Inconsistency Scale (TRIN)7 and the Variable
Response Inconsistency Scale (VRIN)8. Responses to paired items deemed inconsistent, scores one point
on each scale for each pair.
For
two statements to be inconsistent, they must be contradictory. The statements “I love my Father” and “I
hate my Father” are contradictory.
Putting forth as inconsistent two statements that do not address the
same logical category or are not contradictory, suffers from irrelevant
thesis. A pair of items from the VRIN
Scale are:
6. My father is a good man, or (if your father is
dead) was a good man.
90. I love my father, or (if your father is dead) I
loved my father.
The
two items neither address the same logical categories nor contradict each other
if both are answered “TRUE” or both answered “FALSE.” The contradictory of “My father is a good man” is “My father is a
bad man.” It is possible to hate a
father who is good if, for example, he were a missionary or diplomat posted
abroad and absent from a child’s life.
It is also possible for a child to love a father who is abusive.
The
TRIN and VRIN tables may be viewed in their entirety in the footnotes.
Pulling it all together
In the privacy of your own home,
you, too, can make your own junk science instruments that are self
-validating! Amuse your friends! Develop your own “mental health” snake
oil! BROWN’S AMAZING UNIVERSAL SWISS
ARMY TOOL OF INTELLECTUAL FRAUD, demonstrated below, incorporates the logical
fallacies identifiable in the MMPI. It is pure junk science that can be adapted to place
any label one might want on a person who would take the “test,” while being of
virtually no scientific value. This can
be accomplished by using carefully crafted bifurcated multiple scale
associations with both responses. High
statistical associations with any human trait or activity are ensured by the
subject of the three statements.
Although this “test” is obviously
ludicrous, the reality is that equally ludicrous items have been used in the
“mental health” industry for over fifty years to send people to prison and
mental institutions. To be labeled as
whatever a test is “designed” to detect, all one has to do, is select an answer
for every item included in one of these purported evaluation tests structured to
produce false positives. If the
intellectual fraud is completely successful, the person evaluated will also
accept the false results as true. One
cannot help but be reminded of the successful Nazi propaganda that resulted in
Jews actually purchasing tickets to board trains that would take them to gas
chambers.
BROWN’S AMAZING UNIVERSAL SWISS ARMY TOOL OF
INTELLECTUAL FRAUD!
1.
I am right-handed.
TRUE FALSE
Spouse Abuse Potential Deviant
Life Style
Child Abuse Potential Stress Scale
Ego Strength Work
Problems Scale
Committed Child Abuse Anxiety
Scale
Committed Spouse Abuse
2.
I am left-handed.
TRUE FALSE
Spouse Abuse Potential Ego
Strength
Child Abuse Potential
Deviant Life Style
Work Problems Scale
Stress Scale
Committed Child Abuse
Committed Spouse Abuse
Anxiety Scale
3.
I am breathing.
TRUE FALSE
Spouse Abuse Potential Health
Concerns
Child Abuse Potential Lying Scale
Committed Child Abuse Acute
Anxiety
Committed Spouse Abuse
Deviant Life Style
Work Problems
Stress Scale
Ego Strength
Anxiety Scale
Inconsistency/Deception
Scale
1.
I am right-handed. TRUE
2.
I am left-handed. TRUE
1.
I am right-handed. FALSE
2.
I am left-handed. FALSE
FINDINGS FROM RESPONSES
[Responding TRUE to both items or FALSE to both
items would score one point on the Inconsistency/Deception Scale. This sounds reasonable until one considers
how special populations could respond.
An ambidextrous individual could honestly answer TRUE or FALSE to both
questions. Persons without limbs, by
accident or birth defect, could answer FALSE to both questions.]
A
person answering TRUE to item 1 would be "diagnosed" as follows:
Respondent’s answers indicate past acts of both
child abuse and spouse abuse. Potential
to engage in child abuse and spouse abuse is indicated, as are ego strength
problems.
It is possible to calculate the
minimum and maximum scores for each scale created by bifurcation.9
Probing for the bottom of
the snake pit
Those who may be tempted to dismiss
Parts Three and Four of this series as intellectual nit-picking, should keep in
mind that old adage about knowing a tree by its fruit. The consequences of this intellectual fraud
for children, and the organized crime it supports, can be the destruction of
their entire lives. Junk science is
used to place children on psychoactive drugs, remove them from parental
custody, label them as violent or sexual predators, and to justify forced
placement in institutions or treatment programs.
This is not the worst atrocity
committed by the alliance of political extremists and criminals exploiting the
child protection, mental health and social work systems. Parts Five and Six will examine how children
and adults are manipulated to lie and provide false testimony that financially
benefits the criminal interests and helps political extremists achieve their
goals.
Footnotes
1In addition to professional publications and government reports, the
popular media also reports horror stories about excesses and incompetence in
the child protection system. Media
article links to stories may be activated through “Lifting the Veil: Examining
the Child Welfare, Foster Care and Juvenile Justice Systems” at:
http://home.rica.net/rthoma/newslink.htm
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) Audio News from Around the Web.
Audio news on the topics of foster care, child
welfare and juvenile justice gathered from some of the Web's leading news
sources.
(2) Featured article series
A selection of newspaper series exploring child
protection, foster care, groups homes, juvenile justice and more. Included are
links to series from the Boston Globe, Sacramento Bee, Las Vegas SUN, and more.
Updated March 21, 1999.
(3) 1999 News roundup
Articles on the subjects of child protection, foster
care, and juvenile justice drawn from many of the leading newspapers. Articles
are arranged in reverse chronological order, dating back to the beginning of
the year. Frequently updated.
(4) 1998 News roundup
News articles dating back to the beginning of 1998.
(5) 1997 News Roundup
News articles dating from June through December 1997.
2Links to STUDIES, SURVEYS, AND AUDITS describing the state of affairs
in the administrative divisions of the child protection system may be activated
through:
http://home.rica.net/rthoma/studies.htm
I. Foster Care
II. Family Preservation
III. Juvenile Justice
IV. Child Welfare
V. Grand Jury Reports
VI.. Other Research
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. FOSTER CARE
(1) Assessing How Well the Foster Care Program In
Kansas is Working, Part II: Funding, Staffing, and Monitoring Issues,
Legislative Division of Post Audit, Report 99PA03.2, December 1998. (Download
complete PDF report.)
(2) Assessing How Well the Foster Care Program In
Kansas is Working, Part I: Services and Placements, Legislative Division of
Post Audit, Report 99PA03.1, November 1998. (Download complete PDF report.)
(3) Foster Care. Tennessee Division of State Audit,
Audit 97113, November 1998. (Download complete PDF report.)
(4) Foster Care: Agencies Face Challenges Securing
Stable Homes for Children of Substance Abusers. General Accounting Office,
GAO/HEHS-98-182, September 30, 1998.
(5) Foster Care: Implementation of the Multiethnic
Placement Act Poses Difficult Challenges. General Accounting Office,
GAO/HEHS-98-204, September 14, 1998.
(6) Verifying Information Provided by the Department
of Social and Rehabilitation Services on its Compliance with the Terms of the
Foster Care Lawsuit Settlement Agreement--Monitoring Report #8, Legislative
Division of Post Audit, Report 98PA34.2, July 1998. (Complete PDF report.) See
also Eye on Kansas for related reports.
(7) Retroactive Claims Under the Title IV-E Foster
Care Program in Indiana U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of
the Inspector General, Audit A-05-97-00026, January 22, 1998.
(8) Foster Care Training Administrative Costs
Claimed for Federal Reimbursement by the California Department of Social
Services. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector
General, Audit A-09-96-00066, September 4, 1997.
(9) The State of the Children: An Examination of
Government-Run Foster Care, Conna Craig and Derek Herbert, Institute for
Children, National Center for Policy Analysis, August, 1997.
(10) Report of Costs Allocated to the Title IV-E
Foster Care Program (State of Missouri)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office
of the Inspector General, Audit A-07-97-01027, June 11, 1997.
(11) Foster Care: State Efforts to Improve The
Permanency Planning Process Show Some Promise. Letter Report, GAO/HEHS-97-73,
May 7, 1997.
(12) Summary Report on Nationwide Audit of Training
Contract and Administrative Costs Charged to Department of Health and Human
Services Supported Programs. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Office of the Inspector General, Audit A-02-95-02002, April 25, 1997.
(12) Foster Care: State Efforts to Expedite
Permanency Hearings and Placement Decisions. Testimony, GAO/T-HEHS-97-76,
February 27, 1997.
(13) Hevesi Audit Find Unsanitary Conditions At HRA
Group Homes. Office of New York City Comptroller Alan G. Hevesi, Preliminary
Audit Findings, November 28, 1996. Auditors were barred and ejected by HRA
personnel from seven homes during unannounced visits. Roaches, rodent
droppings, spoiled and outdated food, chemicals stored with food and a lack of
inventory records were found at group homes run by the Human Resources
Administration during a follow-up audit by the Comptroller.
(14) Allocation of Title IV-E Training Costs -
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services, Office of the Inspector
General, Audit A-05-96-00013, August 20, 1996.
(15) Follow-Up Audit Report on The Human Resources
Administration's Foster Care Tracking and Claiming Systems. Office of New York
City Comptroller Alan G. Hevesi, Bureau of Financial Audit EDP Division, 7F
96-128, June 24, 1996. Details a pattern of gross fiscal mismanagement, and the
use of "generic addresses" for foster children by the New York City
Administration for Children's Services.
(16) Core Dataset Project: Child Welfare Service
Histories. Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago. April
8, 1996. (16) Review of Missouri Claims for Training Costs. U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Audit
A-07-95-01008, February 21, 1996.
(17) Retroactive Claims for the Title IV-E Foster
Care Program Resubmitted by the Missouri Department of Social Services. U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Audit
A-07-95-01010, February 20, 1996.
(18) Maintenance Payments Retained by Child Placing
Agencies in the Texas Foster Care Program. U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Office of the Inspector General, Audit A-06-95-00035, February 6,
1996.
(19) Review of Rising Costs in the Emergency
Assistance Program. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the
Inspector General, Audit A-01-95-02503, October 6, 1995.
(20) The Wisconsin Study of Youth Aging Out of
Out-Of-Home Care: A Portrait of Children About to Leave Care. Mark Courtney and
Irving Piliavin, School of Social Work and Institute for Research on Poverty,
University of Wisconsin-Madison, September, 1995.
(21) Improvements Needed in Monitoring Child Placing
Agencies in the Texas Foster Care Program. U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Office of the Inspector General, Audit A-06-94-00041, August 5, 1995.
(22) Foster Care: Health Needs of Many Young
Children Are Unknown and Unmet. Letter Report, GAO/HEHS-95-14, May 26, 1995.
(23) Report to the General Assembly: Selected Issues
in Foster Care. South Carolina Legislative Audit Council, Reference: LAC/94-2,
January, 1995.
(24) Respite Care Services for Foster Parents: Six
Case Studies. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the
Inspector General, Inspection, August 1994. Summary
(25) Foster Care: Parental Drug Abuse Has Alarming
Impact on Young Children. Letter Report, GAO/HEHS-94-89, April 4, 1994.
(26) Audit of Title IV-E Foster Care Eligibility in
California for the Period October 1, 1988 through September 30, 1991. U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Audit
A-09-92-00086, March 18, 1994.
(27) Review of Retroactive Foster Care Title IV-E
Claims Submitted by the Missouri Department of Social Services. U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Audit
(A-07-92-00601, March 8, 1994.
(28) Residential Care: Some High-Risk Youth Benefit,
But More Study Needed. Letter Report, HEHS-94-56, January 28, 1994.
(29) Foster Care: Federal Policy on Title IV-E Share
of Training Costs. Letter Report, GAO/HRD-94-7, November 3, 1993.
(30) Cohort 2: A Study of Families and Children
Entering Foster Care
1991-1993. Child Welfare Partnership, Portland State
University
(31) Cohort2 Study: Branch Level Reports - State
Summary and individual SOSCF Branch Level Information, including tables and
graphs.
(32) Cohort2 Study: Final Report - Full Text of the
Final Report, including tables and graphs.
(33) Cohort2 - Data Maps - Maps reflecting Level of
Vulnerability and Family Factors.
(34) Cohort2 - PowerPoint© Slide Show - Slide show
overview of Cohort2 Findings
(35) Using Relatives for Foster Care. Richard P.
Kusserow, Office of the HHS Inspector General, OEI-06-90-02390, 1992.
II. FAMILY PRESERVATION
(1) Child Welfare: States' Progress in Implementing
Family Preservation and Support Services. Letter Report, GAO/HEHS-97-34,
February 18, 1997.
(2) Child Welfare: Opportunities to Further Enhance
Family Preservation and Support Activities. Letter Report, June 15, 1995.
(3) A Review of Family Preservation and Family
Reunification Programs. Westat, Inc. in association with James Bell Associates,
Inc., and The Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago, For
the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, May 30, 1995.
(4) A Synthesis of Research on Family Preservation
and Family Reunification Programs. Julia H. Littell and John R. Schuerman,
Westat, Inc., in association with James Bell Associates, and the Chapin Hall
Center for Children at the University of Chicago. A part of the National Evaluation
of Family Preservation Services for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for
Planning and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. May,
1995. Executive Summary
(5) Intensive Family Reunification Programs. Ariel
Ahart, Ruth Bruer, Carolyn Rutsch, Richard Schmidt, and Susan Zaro, Macro
International, Inc., For the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation,
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, June 30, 1992. Executive Summary.
III. JUVENILE JUSTICE
(1) Juvenile Courts: Reforms Aim to Better Serve
Maltreated Children. General Accounting Office, GAO/HEHS-99-13, January 11,
1999. (Report available in Plain text or in PDF format.
(2) Child Abuse and Neglect Proceedings in Illinois
Jurisdictions Outside Cook County: A Descriptive Report. Chapin Hall Center for
Children at the University of Chicago. Report focuses on court proceedings in
parts of Illinois other than Cook County. May 1997. Available in Text or in
Word Perfect format.
(3) Timeliness and Delay in the Cook County Juvenile
Court Child Protection Division. Chapin Hall Center for Children at the
University of Chicago. Report focuses on court proceedings in Cook County.
January 1997. Available in Text or in Word Perfect format.
(4) Assessment and Recommendations for Improving
Child Abuse and Neglect Proceedings in Montana Courts. Montana Supreme Court,
Office of the Court Administrator. December 1996. Available in Text or in Word
Perfect format.
(5) Improving the Court Process for Alaska's
Children in Need of Aid. Alaska Judicial Council. October 1996. Available in
Text or in Word Perfect format.
(6) Juvenile Justice: Status of Delinquency
Prevention Program and Description of Local Projects. Letter Report,
GAO/GGD-96-147, August 13, 1996.
(7) At-Risk and Delinquent Youth: Multiple Federal
Programs Raise Efficiency Questions. Letter Report, GAO/HEHS-96-34, March 6,
1996.
IV. CHILD WELFARE
(1) Juvenile Out-of-Home Placement, Minnesota Office
of the Legislative Auditor, Program Evaluation Division, Report Number: 99-02,
January 11, 1999. Report examines Minnesota's locally-administered juvenile
out-of-home placement system. It documents the reasons for placements and
assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the system.
(2) Child Welfare: Early Experiences Implementing a
Managed Care Approach. General Accounting Office, GAO/HEHS-99-8, October 21,
1998.
(3) Final Report: A Comprehensive Review of the
Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services, American Humane
Association, National Child Welfare Resource Center for Organizational
Improvement, Edmund S. Muskie School of Public Service, Child Welfare Policy
and Practice Group, and Pollmet, Inc. September 9, 1998.
(4) Healthy Start: Preliminary Results From National
Evaluation Are Not Conclusive
General Accounting Office, GAO/HEHS-98-167, June 15,
1998.
(5) Child Protective Services, Minnesota Office of
the Legislative Auditor, Program Evaluation Division, Report Number 98-01.
January 13, 1998. Of particular interest is that this audit found the child
fatality data was unreliable, to the extent that it reported twice the number
of child fatalities which actually occurred over a two year period.
(6) Kern County: Management Weaknesses at Critical
Points in Its Child Protective Services Process May Also Be Pervasive Throughout
the State. California State Auditor, Bureau of State Audits, Report Number
97103, January 1998. Summary or download the complete PDF report.
(7) Arizona Department of Economic Security,
Division of Children,Youth and Families
Office of the Auditor General, Report No. 97-18,
November, 1997.
(8) Social Service Privatization: Expansion Poses
Challenges in Ensuring Accountability for Program Results. General Accounting
Office, GAO/HEHS-98-6, October 20, 1997.
(9) Kansans Talk Back: Early Responses To The Move
To Privatization of Child Welfare Services. National Association of Social
Workers, Kansas, October, 1997. Child Protective Services: Complex Challenges
Require New Strategies, Letter Report, GAO/HEHS-97-115, July, 1997.
(10) Fifteen Years of Failure: An Assessment of
California's Child Welfare System
Justin Matlick, Pacific Research Institute, March,
1997.
(11) The WISDOM Project. Donald J. Baumann, Homer D.
Kern, and John D. Fluke, Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory
Services, January, 1997.
(12) Training Contract Costs Claimed For Federal
Reimbursement By The California Department of Social Services. U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Audit, August 9,
1996. Summary
(13) The Emergency Responce System: Screening and
Assessment of Child Abuse Rep[o]rts, Ruth Lawrence Karski, Neil Gilbert, and
Laura Frame. School of Social
Welfare, UC Berkeley, July, 1996.
Executive Summary.
(14) Child Abuse and Neglect in California.
Legislative Analyst's Office, January, 1996.
(15) Rising Costs in the Emergency Assistance
Program. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector
General, Audit, October 1995. Summary
(16) A Nation's Shame: Fatal Child Abuse and Neglect
in the United States. U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect, U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, April, 1995.
(17) Oversight of State Child Welfare Programs. U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General,
Inspection, June 1994. Summary
(18) Emergency Assistance Payments Claimed by the
Maryland Dept. of Human Resources. U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Office of the Inspector General, March, 1994. Summary
(19) Child Welfare System. Utah Legislative Auditor
General, December, 1993. Download complete PDF report.
V. GRAND JURY REPORTS
(1) 1996 - 97 San Francisco Civil Grand Jury,
Juvenile Justice System, 1997.
(2) 1993 - 1994 San Diego County Grand Jury,
Analysis of Child Molestation Issues, Report No. 7. June 1, 1994.
(3) 1992 - 1993 Santa Clara County Grand Jury,
Investigation: Department Of Family And Children's Services, Final Report.
1993.
(4) 1991 - 1992 SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY
The San Diego County Grand Jury reports are among
the most comprehensive examinations of the child welfare, foster care and
juvenile justice systems conducted by an independent body.
(a)
Families in Crisis Report No. 2. February 6, 1992.
(b)
Families in Crisis, Supplement June 29, 1992
(c)
The Crisis in Foster Care Report No. 7. June 29, 1992
(d)
Child Sexual Abuse, Assault, and Molest Issues Report No. 8. June 29, 1992
(5) County of Tom Green, Texas, Grand Jury Report,
December 7, 1987.
VI. RELATED RESEARCH
(1) Marisol v. Giuliani Civil Complaint. Includes
detailed account of agency operations and comprehensive history of the New York
City child welfare system.
(2) Federal Law Enforcement: Investigative Authority
and Personnel at 13 Agencies. General Accounting Office, Letter Report,
GAO/GGD-96- 154, September 30, 1996.
(3) Cycle of Sexual Abuse: Research Inconclusive
About Whether Child Victims Become Adult Abusers. General Accounting Office,
Letter Report, GAO/GGD-96-178, September 13, 1996.
(4) Preventing Child Sexual Abuse: Research
Inconclusive About Effectiveness of Child Education Programs. General
Accounting Office, Letter Report, GAO/GGD-96-156, July 26, 1996.
(5) Sex Offender Treatment: Research Results
Inconclusive About What Works to Reduce Recidivism. General Accounting Office,
Letter Report, GAO/GGD-96-137, June 21, 1996.
(6) Characteristics and Sources of Allegations of Ritualistic Child Abuse. Gail Goodman, Final Report to the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, Grant No. 90CA1405. Executive Summary.
3The current exploitative child protection system has produced the
highest number of unnatural orphans in United States history. For personal accounts of surviving the child
protection system, research, and publications see “Survivors of the System:
Foster Children United” at:
http://www.sos-fosternet.org/index1.html
4Article links through PUBLISHED WRITINGS, Webmaster Emerich Thoma at:
http://home.rica.net/rthoma/
(1) A Reply to Andrew Vachss' "A Hard Look at
How We Treat Children". Webmaster Rick Thoma replies to Andrew Vachss'
March 29, 1998, article in Parade Magazine. This article appeared in the Summer
1998 edition of Vindicator, the journal of the Ohio Association of Criminal
Defense Lawyers.
(2) “If You Lived Here, You'd be Home Now:” The
Business of Foster Care. Article published in the January 1999 edition of the
peer-reviewed journal Issues in Child Abuse Allegations.
5Recipes for "little boy stew," "little boy pot
pies," and "French fried kid" found in written material of
convicted child molester “ruled nolonger sexually dangerous” who subsequently
allegedly killed and ate a child.
Man charged in Montana cannibal case
Thursday, 21 December 2000 9:31 (ET)
http://www.vny.com/cf/News/upidetail.cfm?QID=146252
BOSTON, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Officials in
Massachusetts expressed shock Thursday that a convicted child molester released
after being ruled nolonger sexually dangerous faced charges in Montana that he
butchered a 10-year-old boy and dined on the boy's cooked remains with
unsuspecting acquaintances.
Suspected serial killer Nathaniel Bar-Jonah,
43, is charged with murdering Zachary Ramsay who disappeared while walking to
school in 1996 in Great Falls, Mont.
Although the boy's remains have never been
found, Montana prosecutors believe they have enough evidence against Bar-Jonah
without a body.
"Just because he's clever enough to get
rid of the body doesn't mean he will get away with homicide," Cascade
County prosecutor Brant S. Light said in Thursday's Boston Globe.
Light said in Thursday's Boston Herald that
the fact that the boy "may have been butchered and fed to others is real
disturbing."
Investigators looking for Ramsay's body this
year dug up small bones on Bar-Jonah's property, but DNA testing showed they
belonged to another of the man's alleged victims.
Authorities believe Ramsay's remains were not
found because Bar-Jonah cut up and cooked the body and served it to a small
circle of friends. Those acquaintances told investigators Bar-Jonah
occasionally brought them food that tasted "funny," such as burgers,
stews, pot pies and chili he claimed were made from venison.
During the investigation, police found some
of Bar-Jonah's cryptic handwritten notes that an FBI expert said contained
messages like "little boy stew," "little boy pot pies," and
"French fried kid."
Court records of earlier therapy sessions
showed that Bar-Jonah's bizarre sexual fantasies "outline methods for
torture, extending to dissection and cannibalism." A caseworker in 1980
wrote that Bar-Jonah "expresses a curiosity about the taste of human
flesh."
Bar-Jonah was charged Wednesday in Great
Falls with murder and kidnapping and was being held on $1.7 million bail.
Bar-Jonah is suspected in a series of other
disappearances and murders. Police said he kept a list of 22 victims, the last
being Ramsay.
Light said he was upset that Massachusetts
officials allowed Bar-Jonah to move with his mother to Montana in 1991, where
he was charged with sexual assault on an 8-year-old boy in 1994. He is
scheduled to go on trial Jan. 16 on sex assault charges involving three other
boys.
When known in Webster, Mass., as David P.
Brown, Bar-Jonah spent 12 years at the Bridgewater State Hospital after trying
to kill two Shrewsbury boys in 1977. He was freed after four mental health
professionals convinced a judge he was no longer sexually dangerous.
One psychologist who evaluated Bar-Jonah
years ago and felt he was still dangerous was shocked when told by the Herald
of the new charges.
"Oh, God," said Leonard Bard.
"That's horrible."
Copyright 2000 by United Press International. All
rights reserved.
6Brown, James R. The
Low Down Quick and Dirty Common Man’s Guide to the Essential Skills of Critical
Thinking, THE SOCIOLOGY CENTERTN, North Little Rock, AR, 1999.
7Brown, James R. Pseudo
Science and Pseudo Logic in Psychological Testing, THE SOCIOLOGY CENTERTN,
North Little Rock, AR, 1999.
TRIN-TRUE RESPONSE
INCONSISTENCY SCALE
Paired
questions are listed with the responses considered inconsistent. Some pairs were counted as inconsistent if
both were answered true or both were answered false and listed twice on the
scale. Those are noted here with the
protocol TRUE:FALSE and FALSE:TRUE rather than two separate listings.
(B)
- Bifurcated.
(C)
- Items common to both TRIN and VRIN scales.
# -
Indicates paired items whose negatives are not equivalent to the other member
of the pair or paired items that do not address the same logical class as
subject.
3.
I wake up fresh and rested most mornings.
TRUE (C)
39.
My sleep is fitful and disturbed. TRUE
(B) (C)
12.
My sex life is satisfactory. TRUE #
166.
I am worried about sex. TRUE (B) #
40.
Much of the time my head seems to hurt all over. TRUE (C) #
176.
I have very few headaches. TRUE (B) (C)
#
(Many
sources of pain can affect the head.)
48.
Most anytime I would rather sit and daydream than do anything else. TRUE (C) #
184.
I dream very little. TRUE # (C)
(Daydreaming
and night dreams are the product of different processes.)
63.
My feelings are not easily hurt. TRUE
127.
Criticism or scolding hurts me terribly.
TRUE (B)
65.
Most of the time I feel blue.
TRUE:FALSE
95.
I am happy most of the time. TRUE:FALSE
73.
I am certainly lacking in self-confidence.
TRUE (B)
239.
I am entirely self-confident. TRUE
83.
I have very few quarrels with members of my family. TRUE (B) (C) #
288.
My parents and family find more fault with me than they should. TRUE (C) #
99.
Someone has it in for me. TRUE #
314.
I have no enemies who really wish to harm me.
TRUE #
(It
is possible for individuals that are not personal acquaintance to "have it
in for someone." This is the
foundation of terrorism.)
125.
I believe that my home life is as pleasant as that of most people I know. TRUE:FALSE
(C) #
195.
There is very little love and companionship in my family as compared to other
homes. TRUE:FALSE (C) #
(It
is possible to believe "little love and companionship" is the normal
experience.)
209.
I like to talk about sex. TRUE (B) #
351.
I am embarrassed by dirty stories. TRUE (B) #
("Talk
about sex" does not require involvement of "dirty stories.")
359.
I enjoy the excitement of a crowd.
TRUE:FALSE #
367.
Whenever possible I avoid being in a crowd. TRUE:FALSE #
(It
is possible to "enjoy" a crowd but avoid crowds because of the
inconvenience or risk of violence.)
377.
I am not happy with myself the way I am.
TRUE
534.
If I could live my life over again, I would not change much. TRUE
556.
I worry a great deal over money. TRUE #
560.
I am satisfied with the amount of money I make. TRUE #
(Concern
about money can be based upon issues other than income satisfaction, such as
job security, national debt, interest rates, or national economic policy.)
9.
My daily life is full of things that keep me interested. FALSE #
56.
I wish I could be as happy as others seem to be. FALSE #
(Perceived
happiness of others is different from daily life interest level.)
140.
Most nights I go to sleep without thoughts or ideas bothering me. FALSE #
196.
I frequently find myself worrying about something. FALSE (B) #
("Frequently"
and "most" are not equivalent.)
152.
I do not tire quickly. FALSE (B) #
464.
I feel tired a good deal of the time.
FALSE (B) #
(The
baseline level of fatigue is logically independent of the rate of fatigue
brought on by additional work, unless both are related to a specific
physiological condition.)
165.
My memory seems to be all right. FALSE
565.
It takes a great deal of effort for me to remember what people tell me these
days. FALSE
262.
In a group of people I would not be embarrassed to be called upon to start a
discussion or give an opinion about something I know well. FALSE #
275.
In school I found it very hard to talk in front of the class. FALSE (B) #
(This
fails to allow for change over time.)
265.
I am likely not to speak to people until they speak to me. FALSE (B) #
360.
I do not mind meeting strangers. FALSE
#
(The
subjective desirability of meeting strangers and the personal ritual used to
greed acquaintances are distinctly different.)
8Brown, James R. Pseudo
Science and Pseudo Logic in Psychological Testing, THE SOCIOLOGY CENTERTN,
North Little Rock, AR, 1999.
VRIN-VARIABLE RESPONSE
INCONSISTENCY
Paired questions are listed with the
responses considered inconsistent. Some
pairs were counted as inconsistent if both were answered true or both were
answered false and listed twice on the scale.
Those are noted here with the protocol TRUE:FALSE and FALSE:TRUE rather
than two separate listings.
(B)
- Bifurcated.
(C)
- Paired items common to both TRIN and VRIN scales.
# -
Indicates paired items whose negatives are not equivalent to the other member
of the pair or paired items that do not
address the same logical class as subject.
3.
I wake up fresh and rested most mornings.
TRUE (C)
39.
My sleep is fitful and disturbed. TRUE
(B) (C)
6.
My father is a good man, or (if your father is dead) was a good man. TRUE:FALSE #
90.
I love my father, or (if your father is dead) I loved my father. FALSE:TRUE #
9.
My daily life is full of things that keep me interested. FALSE
(C) #
56.
I wish I could be as happy as others seem to be. FALSE (C) #
(See
TRIN Scale comment for these items.)
28.
I am bothered by an upset stomach several times a week. TRUE #
59.
I am troubled by discomfort in the pit of my stomach every few days or
oftener. FALSE #
("Upset
stomach" and "discomfort in the pit of my stomach" are not
equivalent.)
31.
I find it hard to keep my mind on a task or job. TRUE (B) #
299.
I cannot keep my mind on one thing.
FALSE (B) #
("One
thing" is a larger class than a specific "task or job.)"
32.
I have had very peculiar and strange experiences. FALSE (B) #
316.
I have strange and peculiar thoughts.
TRUE (B) #
("Experiences"
in common usage refers to life events, while "thoughts" are internal
subjective phenomena.)
40.
Much of the time my head seems to hurt all over. TRUE (C) #
176.
I have very few headaches. TRUE (B) (C)
#
(See
comment in TRIN Scale.)
46.
I prefer to pass by school friends, or people I know but have not seen for a
long time, unless they speak to me first.
TRUE #
265.
I am likely not to speak to people until they speak to me. FALSE (B) (C) #
(These
paired items are based upon logical classes that do not have all elements in
common.)
48.
Most anytime I would rather sit and daydream than do anything else. TRUE (C) #
184.
I daydream very little. TRUE (C) #
(See
comment in TRIN Scale.)
49.
I am a very sociable person. TRUE (B) #
280.
I seem to make friends about as quickly as other do. FALSE (B) #
(Sociability
does not guarantee the acquisition of friends, as this assumes.)
73.
I am certainly lacking in self-confidence.
TRUE (B) (C) #
377.
I am not happy with myself the way I am.
FALSE (C) #
(An
individual may be self-confident and dissatisfied with their condition if it
includes physical deformity or a temporary state due to illness or injury.)
81.
I think most people would lie to get ahead.
TRUE:FALSE (B) #
284.
I think nearly anyone would tell a lie to keep out of trouble. FALSE:TRUE (B) #
("Getting
ahead" and "keeping out of trouble" are not the same logical
class.)
83.
I have very few quarrels with members of my family. TRUE (B) (C) #
288.
My parents and family find more fault with me than they should. TRUE (C) #
(See
comment in TRIN Scale.)
84.
I was suspended from school one or more times for bad behavior. TRUE (B)
105.
In school I was sometimes sent to the principal for bad behavior. FALSE (B)
86.
I like to go to parties and other affairs where there are lots of loud
fun. TRUE #
359.
I enjoy the excitement of a crowd.
FALSE (C) #
("Parties" and "other affairs" are not the same as
"crowd.")
9Brown, James R. Pseudo
Science and Pseudo Logic in Psychological Testing, THE SOCIOLOGY CENTERTN,
North Little Rock, AR, 1999.
Some bifurcated items have equal numbers of scales
associated with each response option, while others have unequal numbers of
scale associations. Although impossible
to do, if the respondent could distinguish between the responses that would
produce the highest and lowest adverse score, Table 2 shows the lowest and
highest adverse scores possible to achieve using only the bifurcated
items. Selecting all the response
options with the highest number of scales are summarized under the HIGH
column. The LOW column summarizes
selecting all the response options with the lowest number of scale
associations. The EQUAL column
indicates the number of scales associated with bifurcated items having equal
numbers of scales associated with each response option. In these instances, no
strategic advantage is gained by selecting one response over the other to
maximize or minimize the adverse score.
The minimum and maximum adverse scores that would result from taking the
test and answering all the question can be calculated by taking half the EQUAL
column total and adding it to the HIGH or LOW column total.
MINIMUM
AND MAXIMUM POSSIBLE ADVERSE SCORE ENSURED BY BIFURCATED ITEMS
Standard
Validity and Clinical Scales (13 scales)
ITMS MEAN HIGH LOW EQUAL
15 2
1 1 L Scale [Lie]
60 6
0 0 F Scale
[Infrequency]
30 9 11
3 K Scale [Defensiveness]
32
14 0 0 Scale 1 (S1) Hypochondriasis (Hs)
57
19 8 2 Scale 2 (S2) Depression (D)
60
26 8 4 Scale 3 (S3) Hysteria (Hy)
50
19 2 2 Scale 4 (S4) Psychopathic Deviate (Pd)
56
20 8 10 Scale 5 (S5)
Masculinity-Femininity (Mf)
40 8
6 2 Scale 6 (S6)
Paranoia (Pa)
48
18 0 0 Scale 7 (S7) Psychasthenia (Pt)
78
19 2 0 Scale 8 (S8) Schizophrenia (Sc)
46
17 3 8 Scale 9 (S9) Hypomania (Ma)
69
26 7 8 Scale 0 (S0) Social Introversion (Si)
641 203 56
40 Subtotals
Content
Scales (CS)
(15 scales)
ITMS
MEAN HIGH LOW EQUAL
23 5.53/6.53 8
1 0 Anxiety (ANX)
23 3.80/6.59 5
2 8 Fears (FRS)
16 4.93/5.50 8
0 0 Obsessiveness
(OBS)
33 4.79/5.86 9
0 0 Depression
(DEP)
36 5.29/6.16 14
0 0 Health Concerns
(HEA)
23 2.30/2.21 3
0 0 Bizarre
Mentation (BIZ)
16 5.63/5.68 2
2 2 Anger (ANG)
23 9.50/8.73 11
4 2 Cynicism (CYN)
22 7.91/6.17 11
2 3 Antisocial
Practices (ASP)
19 8.08/7.41 1
2 6 Type A (TPA)
24 4.25/5.16 2
2 2 Low Self-esteem
(LSE)
24 7.65/7.53 6
2 1 Social
Discomfort (SOD)
25 5.32/6.14 4
0 1 Family Problems
(FAM)
33 7.30/8.51 10
1 1 Work
Interference (WRK)
26 4.70/5.02 3
0 0 Negative
Treatment (TRT)
366 97 18
26 Subtotals
Koss-Butcher
Critical Items
(KB) (6 scales)
ITMS MEAN HIGH LOW EQUAL
17
5 0 0 Acute Anxiety State
22
4 0 0 Depressed Suicidal Ideation
5
3 0 0 Threatened Assault
7
1 0 2 Situational Stress Due to Alcoholism
11
5 0 0 Mental Confusion
16
4 0 0 Persecutory Ideas
78 22
0 2 Subtotals
Lachar-Wrobel
Critical Items
(LW) (11 scales)
ITMS MEAN HIGH LOW EQUAL
11
3 0 0 Anxiety and Tension
16
4 0 0 Depression and Worry
6
3 0 0 Sleep Disturbance
15
0 0 0 Deviant Beliefs
10
5 0 0 Deviant Thinking and Experience
3
2 0 0 Substance Abuse
9
5 1 0 Antisocial Attitude
4
1 0 0 Family Conflict
4
2 0 0 Problematic Anger
6
3 1 1 Sexual Concern and Deviation
23
9 0 0 Somatic Symptoms
107 37 2 1 Subtotals
Suplementary
Scales (SS)
(15 scales)
ITMS MEAN HIGH LOW EQUAL
39
19 1 2 A
Scale Anxiety (A)
37 8 7 5 R
Scale Repression (R)
52 8
35 6 Es Scale Ego Strength (Es)
49
16 15 7 MAC-R
MacAndrew Alcoholism Scale-Revised (MAC-R)
40 2 0 2 Fb
Scale Backside F (Fb)
23* Listed in separate table TRIN True Response Inconsistency (TRIN)
67* Listed in separate table VRIN Variable Response Inconsistency (VRIN)
28 7 5 5 O-H Overcontrolled Hostility (O-H)
25 7
11
4 Do Scale Dominance (Do)
30 8 9 8 Re
Scale Social Responsibility (Re)
41
19 0 0 Mt
Scale College Maladjustment (Mt)
47 8
21 12 GM Scale Masculine
Gender Role (GM)
46
11 7 10 GF Scale Feminine Gender Role (GF)
46
17 0 0 PK
Scale Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PK)
60
19 1 0 PS
Scale Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PS)
630 149 112
61 Subtotals
___ ___ ___ ___
1822** 508 188 130 Totals
57
31 30 Number of scales represented
8.9 6.1 Mean
score per scale
10.1 7.5 Mean score when equally bifurcated
items added (34 total scales for Low
and
Equal, .5 x 130 = 65)
*
Each component of this scale consists of paired questions. Defined conflict between paired questions
scores one point on scale.
**
From 567 items on the MMPI-2 60 scales are constructed with a total of 1822
points. This represents an inflation of
322%.
ITMS
- Number of items in each scale and maximum possible score.
MEAN
- Reported mean score for each scale.
HIGH
- Score resulting from choosing bifurcated question responses with the highest
number of associated scales.
LOW - Score resulting from choosing bifurcated
question responses with the lowest number of associated scales.
EQUAL-
Items that have an equal number of scales associated with each response option.
In addition to the logical problems
depicted in the TRIN and VRIN tables, there is a serious problem with the
logical justification for Scale 5, the Masculinity-Femininity Scale. Scale 5 consists of 56 items with separate
response listings for male and female.
The only divergence between the male interpretive list and the female
interpretive list occurs on items 121, 166, 209 and 268. Responses for the other 52 items are the
same for both male and female interpretive lists. The only consequence of using Scale 5 would be to produce a
meaningless number associated with the gender of the individual taking the
MMPI-2. If the purpose of the scale
were to distinguish gender based upon responses, then only items 121, 166, 209
and 268 would be needed. The remaining
items would serve no purpose.
© Copyright February 14, 2001
by James Roger Brown. All rights
reserved.
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