title: Reliability of the Impulsive-Premeditated Aggression Scale (IPAS) in treated opiate-dependent individuals.
abstract: The purpose of the study was to evaluate the internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the Impulsive Aggression (IA) and Premeditated Aggression (PM) scales of the Impulsive-Premeditated Aggression Scale (IPAS) in male and female substance-dependent patients, and to compare the findings to those obtained on widely used, validated measures of aggression. Using a sample of 121 patients (61 women) in methadone maintenance treatment, 69 (35 women) of which were re-evaluated after a minimum of 2weeks, the IPAS scales showed acceptable internal consistency (alpha>.72) and test-retest reliability (ICC>.54). These results were comparable to the other aggression measures, and results among women were comparable to men. This was the first study to examine the IPAS scales in a substance use population, to contain a sufficient sample of women for sub-analyses, and to examine the stability of the measure. Findings support the internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the IPAS in male and female opiate-dependent individuals.
authors.affiliation: University of Rochester Medical Center, Center for the Study and Prevention of Suicide, 300 Crittenden Blvd, Rochester, NY 14642, USA. kenneth_conner@urmc.rochester.edu
authors.forename: Kenneth R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Conner
authors.forename: Rebecca J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Houston
authors.forename: Luke M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Sworts
authors.forename: Sean
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Meldrum
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000374:Aggression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D009293:Opioid-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012737:Sex Factors