PATTERN RELIABILITY OF NARCOTICS ADDICTS SELF-REPORTED DATA - A CONFIRMATORY ASSESSMENT OF CONSTRUCT-VALIDITY AND CONSISTENCY

Pattern reliability, or the invariance of relationships among variable s, was investigated in this study. The consistency of theoretical cons tructs reflected by measures taken at two separate occasions can be te sted using confirmatory factor analysis. Self-report data were obtaine d from 323 narcotics addicts in two face-to-face interviews conducted in 1974/75 and 1985/86. The two interviews overlapped approximately 4 years between 1970 and 1974/75. Through the testing of the invariance of measurement and structural models, pattern reliability was confirme d in one of the models developed. Explication of pattern reliability o ffers an alternative means of assessing validity of self-report data.