Computerized adaptive testing for assessing substance use and substance use disorder: A systematic review.

Area of Science:

• Psychometrics
• Clinical Psychology
• Substance Use Research

Background:

• Computerized Adaptive Tests (CATs) offer precise and efficient assessment of constructs.
• While CATs exist for substance use and substance use disorder (SUD), their systematic evaluation is lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the literature on CATs for substance use and SUD.
• To determine the scope, strengths, and weaknesses of existing CAT development and validation studies.

Main Methods:

• A pre-registered systematic review of 7 databases and reference lists was conducted.
• 15 eligible records representing 11 CATs for substance use or SUD were identified and analyzed.
• Data extracted included study characteristics, CAT methodology, psychometric outcomes, and study quality.

Main Results:

• Eleven CATs assessed various substance use constructs (e.g., craving, use) for different substances (e.g., alcohol, cannabis) and goals (e.g., screening, diagnosis).
• Significant heterogeneity was observed in CAT methodological choices.
• Psychometric properties of the CATs were minimally evaluated in the original studies.

Conclusions:

• Future CAT research should focus on robust measurement of substance use and SUD in initial item pools.
• Inclusion of diverse samples and rigorous validity testing are crucial for advancing CAT development.
• Greater attention to implementation considerations is needed for effective real-world application of these assessments.