Temporal stability of alcohol screening measures in a psychiatric setting

The authors evaluated the test-retest reliability of two common screening instruments administered in a psychiatric setting. The Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST; M. L. Selzer, 1971) and the CAGE (D. Mayfield, G. McLeod, & P. Hall, 1974) were administered twice, separated by a 1-week interval, to 71 people receiving outpatient psychiatric services and 64 people in the community with no reported history of psychiatric care. The MAST (r = .95) and the CAGE (r = .80) demonstrated adequate test-retest reliability and showed little evidence of variation with respect to degree or direction when administered in a psychiatric setting. Compared to a nonclinical sample, reliability estimates obtained in a psychiatric setting were only slightly lower and more variable. In the psychiatric sample, younger men who had a history of alcohol use disorder were found to be the least reliable. Overall, data suggest that people with severe and persistent mental disorders can offer reliable information about their alcohol-related problems.