The Psychometric Properties of the Drug Abuse Screening Test.

Abstract

BackgroundSubstance abuse is a critical problem in most countries, especially in developing ones. Early detection is the pre-requisite of early control, for which reliable and valid tools are required. In the present study, we aimed at measuring the psychometric properties of the 10-item Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST-10) in Iranian individuals.MethodsAfter translation and back-translation of the questionnaire, 244 adults were recruited from Tehran Megacity, Iran, and completed the questionnaires. Participants were recruited by a multistage randomized cluster sampling method. Reliability was determined by Cronbach’s alpha. Also, construct validity was evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA).FindingsThe internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the total score of the Persian version of DAST-10 was 0.93. EFA evoked only one factor for DAST-10. The CFA for 1-factor models for DAST-10 indicated an acceptable fit for the proposed models.ConclusionThe results prove desirable reliability and validity of the Persian version of the DAST which can be utilized as a screening instrument for drug abuse among Iranian adults.