Development of the athlete drinking scale.
Prior research has found that intercollegiate athletes consume more alcohol and experience more negative alcohol-related consequences than nonathletes, but no measure of sport-related reasons for alcohol use currently exists. The purpose of this study was to develop such a measure, which the authors termed the Athlete Drinking Scale (ADS). An exploratory factor analysis supported the existence of 3 subscales: Positive Reinforcement, Team/Group, and Sport-Related Stress. Additional analyses supported the internal consistency and construct validity of the subscales, and hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that the ADS accounted for a significant amount of variance in both alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems among intercollegiate athletes. The ADS appears to be a promising tool for measuring sport-related reasons for intercollegiate athlete alcohol use.
Martens
Matthew P
MP
Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology, University at Albany, State University of New York, 12222, USA. mmartens@uamail.albany.edu
Watson
Jack C
JC
Royland
Elizabeth M
EM
Beck
Niels C
NC
D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology; D013177:Sports / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires