TY - JOUR
T1 - A brief cannabis-associated problems questionnaire with less potential for bias
AU - Lavender, Jason M.
AU - Looby, Alison
AU - Earleywine, Mitch
PY - 2008/8
Y1 - 2008/8
N2 - Existing measures of problems associated with cannabis use may contain gender-biased items. The Cannabis-Associated Problems Questionnaire (CAPQ), a measure of occupational, social, and psychological problems related to cannabis use, contains items that men and women may endorse differentially. Gender discrepancies in CAPQ scores may indicate true differences in overall problem severity but could also signify the presence of biased items. Additionally, a short form could improve the measure's utility. Examination of responses from a large internet sample of current cannabis users revealed five items that functioned differentially for men and women, suggesting a potential for bias. Omitting these items resulted in a shorter scale with nearly identical psychometric properties. Correlations with cannabis use indices were comparable to those of the full scale, and the effect size for the difference between men's and women's responses did not change significantly. Thus, a short form of the CAPQ could benefit cannabis research.
AB - Existing measures of problems associated with cannabis use may contain gender-biased items. The Cannabis-Associated Problems Questionnaire (CAPQ), a measure of occupational, social, and psychological problems related to cannabis use, contains items that men and women may endorse differentially. Gender discrepancies in CAPQ scores may indicate true differences in overall problem severity but could also signify the presence of biased items. Additionally, a short form could improve the measure's utility. Examination of responses from a large internet sample of current cannabis users revealed five items that functioned differentially for men and women, suggesting a potential for bias. Omitting these items resulted in a shorter scale with nearly identical psychometric properties. Correlations with cannabis use indices were comparable to those of the full scale, and the effect size for the difference between men's and women's responses did not change significantly. Thus, a short form of the CAPQ could benefit cannabis research.
KW - Cannabis
KW - Cannabis-associated problems
KW - Differential item functioning
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=51049121101&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1002/hup.957
DO - 10.1002/hup.957
M3 - Article
C2 - 18521820
AN - SCOPUS:51049121101
SN - 0885-6222
VL - 23
SP - 487
EP - 493
JO - Human Psychopharmacology
JF - Human Psychopharmacology
IS - 6
ER -