Validity of the Obsessive Compulsive Drinking Scale in a heavy drinking population

Background: The Obsessive Compulsive Drinking Scale [OCDS; Anton et al., Alcohol Clin Exp Res 19 (1995), 92] is the most widely used measure of alcohol craving. There are no studies which comprehensively investigate the construct and concurrent validity of the OCDS in a severe alcohol dependent population. Methods: Three hundred and seventy alcohol-dependent patients were referred to a hospital-based alcohol treatment program. All participants completed the OCDS, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test [AUDIT; Saunders et al., Addiction 88 (1993), 791] and provided demographic and alcohol consumption data. Results: The sample was randomly split into 2. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted on these subsamples. Both analyses identified a 4-factor solution (compulsions, interference, obsessions and resisting obsessions). All factors showed sound internal consistency. Neither the factor scores nor the total OCDS score was related to baseline alcohol problems (AUDIT) or consumption. Conclusions: There was some support for the construct validity of the OCDS in this clinical group. Concurrent validity of the scale was not supported by these cross-sectional data. Future research should examine the predictive utility of the OCDS over time