Multidimensional Structure of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test: Factorial Validity and Reliability in Patients With Anxiety and Mood Disorders in Lithuania
In: Alcohol and alcoholism: the international journal of the Medical Council on Alcoholism (MCA) and the journal of the European Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism (ESBRA), Band 56, Heft 1, S. 109-115
ISSN: 1464-3502
Abstract
Aims
The current study aimed to evaluate the factorial structure of the Lithuanian version of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) in patients with anxiety and mood disorders (AMD).
Methods
The AUDIT was completed by 199 consecutive outpatients with AMD (21% men, mean age 39 ± 12 years), as defined by AMD criteria in DSM-5. The MINI International Neuropsychiatric Interview was used for current diagnosis of alcohol use disorder (AUD). Sociodemographic and clinical data were also collected.
Results
In patients with AMD, the AUDIT showed high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.88) and good psychometric characteristics for identifying current AUD at a cut-off value of ≥9 (positive predictive value = 83.7%, sensitivity = 94.7%, specificity = 95.7%). The confirmatory factor analysis suggested a three-factor ('consumption', 'dependence' and 'related consequences') structure and indicated adequate fit to the model (comparative fit index = 0.966, normed fit index = 0.936, root mean square error of approximation = 0.072).
Conclusions
The findings are in line with increasing evidence suggesting that the AUDIT measures three separate factors related to alcohol misuse level of consumption, dependence and alcohol-related consequences and support the utility of AUDIT as a screening instrument for AUD in AMD patients in Lithuania.