Discriminant Function Analysis of Malingerers’ and Neurological Headache Patients’ Self-Reports of Neuropsychological Symptoms

Interpretation of a patient’s neuropsychological examination involves the determination of the role motivational and psychiatric factors may have played. The ability to detect malingering becomes crucial, particularly when the examination occurs as a result of litigation. Moreover, falsely identifying a performance as distorted has serious consequences for the patient. The present study was conducted to replicate previous research that discriminated between malingered and nonmalingered responses to a neuropsychological self-report inventory. An overall hit rate of 84% for malingerers and neurologic headache patients demonstrated replication of the inventory’s ability to identify malingerers. Of those predicted to be malingerers, 27% were false positives indicating the need to use this inventory in conjuction with other neuropsychological measures.