A three component alcohol attitude scale

A summated rating scale of the Likert-type was constructed to measure college students' attitudes toward alcohol use and abuse. Using a three-component approach, a table of specifications for the instrument was developed to include three subscales to measure feeling, belief and intention to act. Comparable emphasis in each subscale was given to drinking behavior, results of drinking and social perspectives. After extensive item development, two experimental forms were administered to a sample of undergraduate college students to gather evidence of item function and validity. Statistical analysis produced a pool of items meeting criteria for internal consistency and discrimination power. According to the table of specifications, 54 items were selected to provide 18 conceptually comparable items for each subscale in the final instrument. The scale was then administered to a sample of 880 undergraduate students at three large, midwestern universities. The data were analyzed statistically to test nine hypotheses concerning validity and performance of the scale. Results demonstrated highly significant levels of internal consistency and discriminating power of items, the subscales and the total scale. The three-component approach was found to be an appropriate, effective technique for measuring attitudes toward health-related behavior.