The legitimacy of sexual addiction as a psychological disorder is a widely debated topic. (Coleman-Kennedy and Pendley, 2002). Due to lack of research, the Hypersexual Disorder diagnosis, or sexual addiction, was rejected from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5^th edition (DSM-5; APA, 2013) in 2015. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF; Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008/2011), a widely used measure for assessing psychopathology, can play a key role by providing insight into this population’s symptomatology.

The current study examined differences in mean scores on MMPI-2-RF scales. We hypothesized that individuals in sexual addiction treatment would score significantly higher on scales related to demoralization, substance use, cognitive problems, family problems, and anxiety based on prior research findings (Blazek, 2013). Participants included 926 individuals in sexual addiction treatment and 2,214 individuals within the general population. We conducted several independent samples t-test to compare mean MMPI-2-RF scale scores across these two groups. Results revealed that those in sexual addiction treatment scored significantly higher on several scales. We specifically found that they scored significantly higher on the Demoralization scale (RCd) (t (3,138) = 27.141, p < .001) and Substance Abuse scale (SUB) (t (3,138) = 14.620, p < .001), as predicted. 46% and 17% of individuals in the sexual addiction sample were clinically elevated (T-score ≥ 65) on RCd and SUB, respectively. These findings indicate a wide range of psychopathology, including significant psychological distress and presence of externalizing behaviors, providing support for sexual addiction being associated with increased risk for psychopathology.