A comparison of two retrospective measures of weekly alcohol consumption: Diary and quantity/frequency index

There is currently uncertainty regarding the relative performance of a retr ospective diary (RD) and a quantity-frequency index (QFI) measure of weekly alcohol consumption. While some previous studies have found more consumpti on reported on an RD than a QFI, others have found the reverse. As yet, how ever, no study has compared computerized versions of these two measures. Th is cross-sectional study involved administration of a computerized survey i n a community-based drug and alcohol treatment setting. Five hundred and ei ghty-six clients (420 males) attending counselling for a range of drug- and alcohol-related issues agreed to participate in the study. The major findi ng was that more alcohol consumption was reported on the RD, than on the QF I. Similarly, the RD detected a greater proportion of both heavy and high-r isk drinkers than the QFI. It is argued that the RD may be preferable to th e QFI as a measure of weekly alcohol consumption, for use in community-base d treatment settings.