Using the Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire-Adolescent Form to predict college drinking: long versus short forms

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Addiction Research
• Adolescent Development

Background:

• Adolescent alcohol expectancies are linked to drinking behaviors.
• Existing measures may be lengthy for certain research contexts.
• The Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire-Adolescent Form (AEQ-A) requires validation in diverse populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a short form of the AEQ-A for college populations.
• To assess the reliability and predictive validity of the shortened AEQ-A.
• To determine if the short form can substitute for the long form in research.

Main Methods:

• Development of a 27-item short form of the AEQ-A.
• Assessment of reliability and predictive validity in a college sample (N = 377).
• Replication of previous findings linking expectancies to drinking styles.

Main Results:

• The short form demonstrated good reliability and predictive validity in the college sample.
• Scale 2 of the short form predicted drinking styles effectively, comparable to the long form's seven scales.
• The shortened AEQ-A proved a reliable and valid substitute for the original measure.

Conclusions:

• The 27-item AEQ-A is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing alcohol expectancies in college students.
• The short form facilitates efficient research by reducing participant burden.
• This validated tool can expedite future studies on adolescent and young adult alcohol use.