Abstract
The Structured Interview of Reported Symptoms (SIRS; Rogers et al., Structured interview of reported symptoms (SIRS) and professional manual, 1992) is a well-validated psychological measure for the assessment of feigned mental disorders (FMD) in clinical, forensic, and correctional settings. Comparatively little work has evaluated its usefulness in compensation and disability contexts. The present study examined SIRS data from 569 individuals undergoing forensic neuropsychiatric examinations for the purposes of workers’ compensation, personal injury, or disability proceedings. Using bootstrap** comparisons, three primary groups were identified: FMD, feigned cognitive impairment (FCI), genuine-both (GEN-Both) that encompasses both genuine disorders (GEN-D) and genuine-cognitive presentation (GEN-C). Consistent with the SIRS main objective, very large effect sizes (M Cohen’s d = 1.94) were observed between FMD and GEN-Both groups. Although not intended for this purpose, moderate to large effect sizes (M d = 1.13) were found between FCI and GEN-Both groups. An important consideration is whether SIRS results are unduly affected by common diagnoses or clinical conditions. Systematic comparisons were performed based on common disorders (major depressive disorder, PTSD, and other anxiety disorders), presence of a cognitive disorder (dementia, amnestic disorder, or cognitive disorder NOS), or intellectual deficits (FSIQ < 80). Generally, the magnitude of differences on the SIRS primary scales was small and nonsignificant, providing evidence of the SIRS generalizability across these diagnostic categories. Finally, the usefulness of the SIRS improbable failure-revised (IF-R) scale was tested as a FCI screen. Although it has potential in ruling out genuine cases, the IF-R should not be used as a feigning screen.
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Notes
For clinical decision making, Cohen’s categorization of effect sizes is not adequate. Instead, we followed Rogers et al. (2003) for Cohen’s d: .75 for moderate, 1.25 for large, and 1.75 for very large.
Our original plan was to use the standard error of measurement (SEM). In the absence of reported reliabilities (Tombaugh, 1996), these could not be calculated.
For example, defense counsel may refer some cases solely because they suspect malingering.
The pooled standard deviations cannot be computed without knowing the precise number in each group. However, the standard deviations are almost identical for F (21.59 vs. 21.58) and Fb (24.12 vs. 24.55); treating the sample sizes as equal produces effect sizes of .68 and .42, respectively. Because persons with comorbidity (PTSD and depression) were not removed, the effect sizes are likely to be underestimates.
The impaired group had no elevations in the definite feigning range for either SEV or SU as compared to one case in the unimpaired group falling within this range on both scales.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by a Research Enabling Grant from the University of North Texas. The authors would like to express their appreciation to Elizabeth Bacon and Mathew Skelton for their tireless efforts in managing this very large dataset.
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Rogers, R., Payne, J.W., Berry, D.T.R. et al. Use of the SIRS in Compensation Cases: An Examination of Its Validity and Generalizability. Law Hum Behav 33, 213–224 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10979-008-9145-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10979-008-9145-9