Using Latent Variable Techniques to Understand DSM-IV Alcohol Use Disorder Criteria Functioning

Objectives: To use factor analytic and item response theory methods to understand diagnostic Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) criteria functioning in non-college young adults. Methods: The current study examined data from the 2009 National Survey of Drug Use and Health. Participants were non-college attending young adults (18 to 25) who consumed alcohol in the prior year. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and item response theory (IRT) techniques were used to assess the dimensionality of DSM-IV AUD criteria. Results: CFA results indicated a dominant single factor, whereas IRT difficulty parameters revealed that the difficulty (severity) parameter estimates were intermixed across the latent AUD continuum. Conclusions: Findings are consistent with research showing that the DSM-IV alcohol abuse and dependence criteria should be combined into a single disorder.