RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Few cross-cultural studies have investigated the self-change process with substance abusers. This study examined commonalities and differences related to the self-change process with Spanish speaking self-changers in Spain and the United States (U.S.) who reported recovering from an alcohol or drug problem on their own (i.e., without formal help or treatment) for ≥1 year. METHOD: Advertisements were primarily used to recruit participants. There were 56 participants in the final sample (Spain, n=29; US; n=27). Participants provided demographic and substance use history information and completed the Drug Use History Questionnaire, Reasons for Change Scale, the Life Events Checklist, and a checklist for maintenance factors after recovery. RESULTS: Significantly more self-changers from the U.S. met DSM IV-TR criteria for alcohol dependence, reported significantly more life events in the year prior to recovery and significantly more maintenance/support events in the year after their recovery than their counterparts in Spain. The majority of participants' recoveries involved abstinence. Some alcohol abusers, however, report successfully engaging in low-risk drinking with no consequences(50% Spain; 22% U.S.), and some drug abusers in Spain (23%) reported a few days per year of very little drug use. CONCLUSIONS: The two groups of Spanish speakers represented very different cultures, and those from the U.S. came from several countries in the Southern hemisphere. The results of this study suggest that even though people speak the same language that does not mitigate against cultural differences. Additional studies of the process of self change with larger participant samples are needed to better inform the development and provision of interventions for Spanish speakers with alcohol and drug use disorders across different cultures and countries.
Asunto(s)
Trastornos Relacionados con Alcohol/rehabilitación , Motivación , Autocuidado , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/rehabilitación , Adulto , Trastornos Relacionados con Alcohol/psicología , Comparación Transcultural , Femenino , Hispánicos o Latinos/psicología , Humanos , Masculino , Americanos Mexicanos/psicología , Persona de Mediana Edad , Autocuidado/psicología , América del Sur/etnología , España , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/psicología , Estados UnidosRESUMEN
The psychometric properties of the Drug Use Disorders Identification Test (DUDIT), an 11-item self-report questionnaire developed to screen individuals for drug problems, are evaluated. The measure, developed in Sweden and evaluated there with individuals with severe drug problems, has not been evaluated with less severe substance abusers or with clinical populations in the United States. Participants included 35 drug abusers in an outpatient substance abuse treatment program, 79 drug abusers in a residential substance abuse treatment program, and 39 alcohol abusers from both treatment settings who did not report a drug abuse problem. The DUDIT was found to be a psychometrically sound drug abuse screening measure with high convergent validity (r=.85) when compared with the Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST-10), and to have a Cronbach's alpha of .94. In addition, a single component accounted for 64.91% of total variance, and the DUDIT had sensitivity and specificity scores of .90 and .85, respectively, when using the optimal cut-off score of 8. Additionally, the DUDIT showed good discriminant validity as it significantly differentiated drug from alcohol abusers. These findings support the DUDIT as a reliable and valid drug abuse screening instrument that measures a unidimensional construct. Further research is warranted with additional clinical populations.
Asunto(s)
Consumidores de Drogas/psicología , Psicometría/instrumentación , Detección de Abuso de Sustancias/métodos , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/diagnóstico , Adulto , Consumidores de Drogas/estadística & datos numéricos , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Tamizaje Masivo , Persona de Mediana Edad , Pacientes Ambulatorios , Escalas de Valoración Psiquiátrica , Reproducibilidad de los Resultados , Tratamiento Domiciliario , Sensibilidad y Especificidad , Índice de Severidad de la Enfermedad , Factores Socioeconómicos , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/prevención & control , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/rehabilitación , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Estados Unidos , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
Two previous studies comparing the Quick Drinking Screen (QDS) with the Timeline Followback (TLFB) found that these two instruments yielded similar reports of alcohol use for clinical and nonclinical populations of problem drinkers. The current study evaluated the correspondence between these two drinking measures with women at risk of an Alcohol-Exposed Pregnancy (AEP). Participants were 355 women who voluntarily participated in a research study during 2005 through 2007 designed to prevent AEPs. All women were screened by phone for eligibility using the QDS and approximately 2 weeks later completed a 3-month TLFB by mail. Results of this study, analyzed in 2008, paralleled previous studies showing that the QDS and the TLFB, two very different drinking measures, collected similar aggregate drinking data for women who drink heavily and are at risk of an AEP. Correspondence between the two drinking measures met acceptable levels of reliability. The present study found that the QDS has demonstrated efficacy for screening women whose level of alcohol use puts them at risk for an AEP. Although the QDS does not yield detailed drinking information, it could be used when it is not possible or necessary to gather daily drinking data.
Asunto(s)
Alcoholismo/diagnóstico , Complicaciones del Embarazo/diagnóstico , Adolescente , Adulto , Femenino , Humanos , Entrevista Psicológica , Tamizaje Masivo/métodos , Recuerdo Mental , Embarazo , Pronóstico , Psicometría , Reproducibilidad de los Resultados , Autorrevelación , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: A recent study comparing the Quick Drinking Screen (QDS) with the Timeline Followback (TLFB) found that in a nonclinical population of problem drinkers both measures produced reliable summary measures of drinking. The current study was designed to replicate these findings with a clinical population of alcohol abusers. The data were collected over three years (2004-2006). METHOD: Participants were 124 alcohol abusers who voluntarily enrolled for outpatient treatment. Over half (52.4%) were female with an average age of almost 40 years. About a third were married, had completed university, and a quarter were unemployed and nonwhite. Participants reported having a drinking problem for an average of 8.3 years, and reported drinking on about 5 days per week, averaging six drinks per drinking day. On two different occasions, they responded to two different sets of questions about their alcohol use. The instruments were: (a) the Quick Drinking Screen (QDS), a summary drinking measure, administered by telephone prior to the assessment; and (2) the TLFB self-administered by computer at the assessment. RESULTS: As in a previous study, this study found that the QDS and the TLFB, two very different drinking measures, collected similar aggregate drinking data for four drinking variables in a clinical sample of alcohol abusers. CONCLUSIONS: When it is not necessary or not possible to gather detailed drinking data, the QDS produces reliable brief summary measures of drinking for problem drinkers. Generalization to nonclinical samples awaits further research.
Asunto(s)
Alcoholismo/diagnóstico , Tamizaje Masivo/métodos , Pacientes Ambulatorios , Adulto , Alcoholismo/epidemiología , Femenino , Florida/epidemiología , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Estudios RetrospectivosRESUMEN
This exploratory study compared the differences among substance abusers in Spain who recovered with treatment or on their own. Advertisements were used to recruit 58 individuals (29 self-changers and 29 treatment-changers) who had had problems with alcohol or drugs, and who had been recovered for at least one year. The groups differed significantly in severity of dependence, psychiatric treatment prior to recovery, and coping strategies to maintain recovery. Consistent with previous studies, those who had recovered through treatment had a more serious substance use history than those who changed on their own. In addition, social support was associated with maintenance of change for both groups. These findings parallel those for English-speaking populations.
Asunto(s)
Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/rehabilitación , Adaptación Psicológica , Adulto , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Pronóstico , Escalas de Valoración Psiquiátrica , Análisis de Regresión , Autocuidado/estadística & datos numéricos , España , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/psicologíaRESUMEN
Because of the high co-occurrence of Axis-I mood disorders with primary substance use disorders (SUD), it is important to routinely assess substance abusers for evidence of a mood disorder. The primary goal of the present study was to examine the psychometric characteristics of two widely used self-report measures of depression (Beck Depression Inventory-II; Patient Health Questionnaire PRIME MD) with substance abusers (N=108) in an outpatient treatment setting. Using Cronbach's alpha, the reliabilities of the BDI-II and the PHQ-9 were 0.95 and 0.91, respectively. Principal component factor analyses of both measures were conducted to evaluate the relationship between a 3-factor solution (cognitive, affective, and somatic) for the BDI-II and a 1-factor solution for the PHQ-9 (depression). Both measures were correlated with severity levels of alcohol and drug use. Advantages and disadvantages of using both measures with substance abusers are discussed.