WORKING PAPER Development of an Ibero-American Forensic Normative Sample for the SCL-90-R - 10.5281/zenodo.18363638

Introduction: Psychological assessment in forensic contexts requires instruments that not only demonstrate adequate psychometric properties, but also rely on normative references that are appropriate for the specific characteristics of the evaluated population. The use of instruments originally developed and normed for clinical or community settings poses significant challenges when applied in judicial and forensic evaluations. The Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) is one of the most widely used self-report measures for the assessment of general psychological symptomatology. Although its use has progressively expanded into forensic settings, interpretation in these contexts is still largely based on clinical or general population norms. Forensic populations present distinctive psychological, contextual, and motivational characteristics, including evaluation under legal consequences, potential response distortion, and exposure to high-risk life conditions. These factors may substantially influence response patterns on self-report instruments, limiting the validity of interpretations based on non-forensic normative samples. This working paper, initiated in 2025, provides the theoretical foundation for the development of an exclusive Ibero-American forensic normative sample for the SCL-90-R, as a necessary step toward improving its interpretative validity in judicial contexts.