Validity and reliability of the Fagerstrom Test for Cigarette Dependence in a sample of Arabic speaking UK-resident Yemeni khat chewers.
BACKGROUND
The Fagerstrom Test for Cigarette Dependence (FTCD) (formally FTND) is widely used for measuring physical dependence on nicotine.


OBJECTIVE
To explore the cross cultural validity and reliability of FTCD amongst Arabic speaker cigarette consumers who chew khat leaf, a stimulant green leaf.


METHODS
The psychometric properties of the FTCD were assessed in a subsample (91 regular cigarette smokers) of purposively selected 204 UK-resident Yemeni khat chewers recruited during random visits to khat sale outlets. Data were collected via a structured face-to-face interview. Data analyses included descriptive tests and factor analysis.


RESULTS
Two factors were obtained by a principle axis factor analysis and these were termed as urgency of restoring the level of nicotine after abstinence during sleeping and maintaining the level of nicotine during waking. The internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha coefficient) of the whole FTCD is low (.68) as well as for the two subscales (.60) and (.62) respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
The psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the FTCD scale in this sample of Yemeni khat chewers who smoked regularly confirmed what has been established in other cultural settings. The findings of this study have yet to be cross validated amongst other appropriately representative sample of Arabic speakers.
Queen Mary University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Institute of Dentistry, London, UK. s.kassim@qmul.ac.uk
Saba
S
Kassim
Mohamed
M
Salam
Ray
R
Croucher
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D029754:Catha / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009538:Nicotine / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000208:ethnology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology; D015006:Yemen / Q000208:ethnology; D055815:Young Adult
D009538:Nicotine