Abstract :
In this study, I investigated the relationships among psychological test variables and schizophrenia
spectrum diagnoses in a Russian sample of 180 psychiatric patients. Schizophrenia is understood
somewhat differently in Russia than in the West. Analyses compared Rorschach (SCZI,
PTI; Exner, 2001) and MMPI (Berezin, Mitroshinkov, & Sokolova, 1994) psychosis indicators
(Sc, Sc3, Sc6, and BIZ) and 3 diagnostic systems: (a) Russian traditional, (b) the Russian-modified
International Classification of Diseases (9th ed. [ICD–9]; Ministerstvo Zdravokhraneniya
SSSR, 1982), and (c) the nonmodified ICD–10 (World Health Organization, 1992; comparable to
the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders [4th ed.], American Psychiatric Association,
1994). Results showed modest support for the SCZI and PTI but not the MMPI indicators.
While the field awaits further evidence, psychologists should proceed with caution when using
the Rorschach and MMPI to assess for psychosis among Russians
