This is the preliminary report of a new memory scoring method. Using the Wechsler Memory Scale as its base, it takes into consideration recent developments by scoring lateralized verbal and figural memory and long-and short-term memory. Six independent memory scales were developed: verbal short term, verbal long term, verbal % retained, figural short term, figural long term, and figural % retained. Studies of 105 subjects (30 normal, 75 brain damaged) demonstrate that these scales are reliable and valid. They are quite sensitive to brain damage in general and are affected by lateralized damage. Norms are related to the Halstead-Reitan Battery Impairment Index, so that memory impairment scores are directly comparable to scores for subtests in that battery.

In the public domain.

The MMPI is used commonly with neurologic patients despite concerns about its validity with this population. The basis for this concern–possible artifactual effects due to neurologic‐related MMPI items (NRIs)–was assessed in this study of 58 closed head trauma (CHT) patients. The MMPI profiles of these patients were analyzed before and after statistical correction was made for 42 NRIs that were identified by three neurologists. Significant effects occurred on Scales 1 (Hs), 2 (D), 3 (Hy), 7 (Pt), and 8 (Sc) in regard to their T scores, frequency of pathological elevation (T < 69), and representation in configured codes. The results suggest that MMPI content scales and subscales may help to distinguish the relative contribution of neurologic and emotional complaints on MMPI profiles.

Several studies of Russell's version of the Wechsler Memory Scale found that the Logical Memory Scales appeared to be normed too high, indicating a need for renorming. This study produces such a renorming by developing new scale scores and age/education corrections. The scaling used a new method, "reference scale norming". The z scores for 12 tests in the Rennick version of the Halstead-Reitan Battery were averaged and used to establish a reference scale. Scale scores for the memory tests were derived from this scale. The results of this study demonstrated that the earlier Logical Memory Scale norms were in fact too high; this error is corrected.

A fundamental requirement for neuropsychological assessment is dependability. Neuropsychological knowledge is dependable only if it has been validated using psychometric methods. Since batteries are used for interpretations, the psychometric validation methods that are acceptable for individual tests must be applied to batteries to produce dependable information. While the standardized battery has been validated, the flexible battery has not. Due to the probability that some tests will be impaired by chance, a flexible battery cannot produce dependable interpretations by selecting or combining test results. Localization and diagnostic assessments are obtained by comparisons. Comparisons require that the tests in a battery are invariant or have equivalent norms along with a common metric. While standardized batteries do meet these criteria, flexible batteries do not. Consequently, clinical judgment applied to a flexible battery cannot provide dependable knowledge beyond that which could be provided by a single validated individual test.