Assessing the World Health Organization's Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test Among Incarcerated Women

• NCJ Number: 171018
• Journal: Journal of Offender Rehabilitation Volume: 26 Issue: 3/4 Dated: (1998) Pages: 71-89
• Author(s): N El-Bassel; R Schilling; A Ivanoff; D Chen; M Hanson
• Date Published: 1998
• Length: 19 pages
• Grant Number(s): 5R01 DA07659
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: DCC

Annotation

This study demonstrates that the Alcohol Use Disorder Test (AUDIT) can be used to identify problem drinkers among incarcerated, drug-using women.

Abstract

The AUDIT, developed by the World Health Organization, was administered to 400 incarcerated, drug-using women in order to assess its utility, validity, and reliability. Principal component factor analysis and reliability tests were conducted. Sensitivity and specificity for all possible AUDIT cutoff points were computed, and a Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) curve was plotted to suggest an AUDIT cutoff point for identifying problem drinkers. This cutoff point was then assessed as to its concurrent and discriminant validity. Problem drinkers and non-problem drinkers displayed significant differences with respect to psychological symptoms, trauma history, physical illness, and socio-demographic characteristics. Study results demonstrate that the AUDIT can be used as a consistent and summated screening tool for identifying problem drinkers among incarcerated, drug-using women. However, the study has several weaknesses: (1) the use of a non-random sample limits the generalizability of the findings; (2) most of the data were based on self-reports; and (3) the questionnaire used in the study may not be an ideal comparison standard. Figure, tables, references, notes