Psychometric Properties of Alcohol Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (Assist V3.0) Among University Students

Psychometric Properties of Alcohol Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (Assist V3.0) Among University Students

Background: Urine drug test was in use among the undergraduates in the study area for 4 years. The World Health Organization’s Alcohol Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) was introduced recently. This study aimed to determine the reliability of the self-report and its validity against urine drug test. Methods: This study of diagnostic accuracy was conducted among students of Babcock University, Nigeria, in 2013. Each student had urine drug test and interview with the use Alcohol Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) on the same day. The laboratory officers and the interviewers were blind to the results of each other. Results: The 2797 participants were mostly 18-20 years (61.2%) and females (65.1%), Urine of 0.1% tested positive to cannabis and Methamphetamine, 0.4% to Opiates. The three-month selfreport gave the prevalence rates of Amphetamine Type Stimulants, Opioids, Diazepam, Cannabis and cocaine at 1.2%, 2.6%, 1.4%, 1.0%, and 0.3% respectively. Against the urine drug test, ASSIST had low sensitivity and high specificity. Its diagnostic accuracy was greater than 95%. Eleven domains of ASSIST had internal correlation coefficients of greater than 0.7. Conclusions: The ASSIST version 3 has acceptable psychometric properties and is valid for use among university students.