Concordance of different measures of nicotine dependence: two pilot studies

Two samples of adult daily smokers completed a structured interview to determine nicotine dependence according to generic (DSM-IV/ICD-10), Fagerström [Fagerström Tolerance Questionnaire (FTQ), Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND), Heavy Smoking Index (HSI), and time to first cigarette after awakening (TFC)], consumption [e.g., cigarettes/day (CPD)], and self-rating (e.g., "how addicted are you") measures. One sample was a population-based sample of 43 smokers from the Vermont site of the DSM-IV field trial for substance use disorders. The other sample consisted of 50 smokers evenly distributed across a wide range of CPD to study biochemical markers of smokers. In the first study, DSM/ICD criteria were only slightly correlated with Fagerström (r =.24-.35) and consumption (r =.06-0.33) criteria. Self-rating criteria were correlated moderately with most other criteria (r =.24-.60). In the second study, generic, Fagerström, and self-rating criteria increased with increasing CPD up to 30 CPD but not thereafter. One interpretation of these results is that generic, Fagerström, consumption, and self-rating criteria each tap different aspects of nicotine dependence.