All 50 states mandate screening for drunk drivers, to clarify an offender's need for treatment for alcohol and drug use disorders, and to determine recidivism risk. Yet, no currently available screening instruments have been validated that meet minimal criteria to accurately triage offenders. Our Center has developed such an instrument and we propose to further validate, update, and shorten it, using previously collected in-house data. The final computerized self-report instrument will be user-friendly and highly researched, and will incorporate the entire body of literature on methods known to work in DWI screening. In Phase I, we will develop one of four test domains, Alcohol Use Disorders, in both computerized and paper formats. Tasks will include a comprehensive psychometric evaluation of existing item data incorporating updated diagnostic criteria, a simplification of scoring through measurement modeling, extensive concurrent and convergent validation, a redesign of the survey instrument and reports, and software programming. In Phase II, remaining domains will be integrated, predictive validity will be established using existing and prospective data, norms will be established, and it will be piloted in a DWI judicial setting to test usability, and satisfaction. This instrument will have the capability of impacting approximately 1.5 million arrests being processed in over 10,000 courts yearly.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Type
Small Business Innovation Research Grants (SBIR) - Phase I (R43)
Project #
1R43AA013770-01
Application #
6550026
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1-BBBP-1 (10))
Program Officer
Lowman, Cherry
Project Start
2003-04-16
Project End
2004-10-30
Budget Start
2003-04-16
Budget End
2004-10-30
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2003
Total Cost
$89,859
Indirect Cost
Name
Behavioral Research, Inc.
Department
Type
DUNS #
137537234
City
Albuquerque
State
NM
Country
United States
Zip Code
87102