Consistency of self-administered and interview-based Addiction Severity Index composite scores.
OBJECTIVE
This study assesses the viability of a self-administered version of the Addiction Severity Index for monitoring substance abuse patients' functioning.


METHODS
Patients completed the ASI interview and a self-administered questionnaire containing ASI composite items an average of 4 days apart. Composite scores from both formats were compared using correlations and mean differences.


METHODS
Participants were 316 veterans entering substance abuse treatment in a US Department of Veterans Affairs medical center.


RESULTS
Composite scores for alcohol, drug, psychiatric, family, legal and employment problems correlated 0.59-0.87 across formats. Patients endorsed more drug use and psychiatric symptoms by questionnaire than by interview. Medical composite scores correlated only 0.47 across formats.


CONCLUSIONS
This study and previous research suggest that a self-administered questionnaire can be a feasible alternative to ASI interviews for monitoring substance abuse patients' treatment outcomes.
Rosen
C S
CS
Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, Center for Health Care Evaluation, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA. crosen@stanford.edu
Henson
B R
BR
Finney
J W
JW
Moos
R H
RH
D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008487:Medical History Taking / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States