ASSESSMENT OF CRAVING IN ALCOHOL-DEPENDEN T PATIENTS BY MEANS OF A NEWLY-DEVELOPED QUESTIONNAIRE (LUBECKER CRAVING-RISIKO-RUCKFALL-FRAGEBOGEN)

This paper describes the development of a new instrument for measureme nt of craving in alcohol dependent patients. Craving is measured by se lf-statements. 146 alcoholics were examined. The results show that cra ving depends on situational factors, varying with the time of day and place. The severity of craving 30 days before inpatient treatment is s hown. Four empirically substantiated subscales of psychological cravin g are presented. In the discussion the quality of the new questionnair e is assessed and connections to research on relapse are established. Finally, the importance of coping with craving in the prevention of re lapse is pointed out.