Restructured Clinical (RC) Scales

These scales are the more obvious, distinct, and supposedly clearer forms of the Clinical scales (Tellegen, Ben-Porath, McNulty, Arbisi, Graham, and Kaemmer, 2003). They may be helpful in interpreting the Clinical scales.

RCd- dem- Demoralization- (24 items)- a measure of overall emotional discomfort; a general psychopathology factor used to compare with the other scales in which this factor was removed for the most part. Feeling discouraged, demoralized, pessimistic, poor self-esteem, and over whelmed.

RC1- som- Somatic Complains- (27 items)- very similar to it’s Clinical Scale counterpart, Hypochondrasis-1, excessive preoccupation with bodily and health concerns. Complains of weakness, fatigue, and chronic pain. Prone toward somatization and may experience physical problems as a result of stress. This scale does not rule out physical disease.

RC2- lpe- Low Positive Emotions- (17 items)- depressed, pessimistic, withdrawn, anhedonia, bored, low energy, and indecisive.

RC3- cyn- Cynicism- (15 items)- this is the “Naively Trusting” sub-scale of Hysteria-3 standing on its head. Since the Clinical Hysteria scale reflects the complex dynamics of Hysteria, this scale represents the insightless purification of scale 3, and therefore it has nothing to do with Hysteria. It is a measure of cynicism. This scale is unlikely to be helpful in understanding elevations in scale 3. The Hysteric denies aggressive motives and converts aggression into somatization. This scale is simply the items about the belief that other people are untrustworthy, dishonest, uncaring, and exploitive.

RC4- asb- Antisocial Behavior- (22 items)- a pure measure of anti-social tendencies, whereas scale 4 is complex and may be elevated mainly due to demoralization. Measures aggressiveness, antagonism, argumentativeness, tendency to lie, cheat, difficulty conforming to societal norms, acting out, substance abuse, family conflicts and poor achievement.

RC6- per- Ideas of Persecution- (17 items)- similar to Pa Obvious or Pa1, measures persecutory ideation.

RC7- dne- Dysfunctional Negative Emotions- (24 items)- anxiety, irritability, unhappiness, helplessness, rumination, worry, over-sensitivity, guilt, intrusive thoughts.

RC8- abx- Aberrant Experiences- (18 items)- hallucinations, bizarre perceptual experiences, delusional beliefs, impaired reality testing; scorers T65-74 may have schizotypal traits, and scorers >T74 may be psychotic.

RC9- hpm- Hypomanic Activation- (28 items)- grandiose, sensation seeking, risk-taking, poor impulse control, euphoria, excitation, decreased need for sleep, racing thoughts, and aggression. Scorers >T74 may be experiencing a hypomanic or manic episode.