The Alcohol Dependence Scale

The Alcohol Dependence Scale is a 25 item test which uses answers provided by subjects to assess behaviors that are connected to the desire to compulsively consume alcohol. This test has a major advantage in that it is relatively short and subjects are able to answer the questions with ease in that participants are typically able to answer all of the questions in under 10 minutes.
The test is scored using a 2 and 3 point questions, which yield a score between 0 and 47. In general, the higher the raw total score is, the greater the alcohol dependency of the subject. According to Skinner and Horn, the test has a reliability of 0.90, which is tolerable for this type of test, however, there is a certain degree of concern in the fact that participants relay their own symptoms in the answering of the questions, which carries the risk of subjects not answers the questions truthfully. Further validation studies showed that the test has a correlation of about 0.70, but there is a lacking in terms of the psychological, as well as social impairment that subjects believe they experience (Skinner & Horn, 1989).
However, the test does appear to be accurate in establishing a connection between alcohol dependency and the desire to seek out help. Skinner and Horn found that those subjects that believe they are dependent on alcohol are more likely to want to receive help and intervention. It seems that the test allows researchers to look at how compulsive drinkers think about and relate to some of the consequences of their addiction. Overall, the test is very useful for participants that are actively looking for alcohol treatment as a result of alcohol dependence.
My older brother is dependent on alcohol. This test would allow my family to glim...

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...tionally, they may drink because they have relationship problems, or they may drink regardless of the occasion or reason, amongst other behaviors.
According to Horn, at al., most of the scales in this assessment have reliability coefficients between 0.65 and 0.80. The appear to be internally consistent and also appear to be stable from one user to the next, with stable consistency. This makes the test applicable over time and over different types of users.
This test would be useful in my brother case because it connects alcohol dependency to a behavior pattern. Determining the behavior pattern would allow us to understand why my brother has an alcohol addiction and what triggers the specific behaviors associated with his drinking. This could potentially lead to him eliminating these triggers so that he would have less of a reason to engage in compulsive drinking.