Objectives: To describe and validate the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS). Metho
ds: The AIS is a self-assessment psychometric instrument designed for quant
ifying sleep difficulty based on the ICD-IO criteria. It consists of eight
items: the first five pertain to sleep induction, awakenings during the nig
ht, final awakening, total sleep duration, and sleep quality; while the las
t three refer to well-being, functioning capacity, and sleepiness during th
e day. Either the entire eight-item scale (AIS-8) or the brief five-item ve
rsion (AIS-5), which contains only the first five items, can be utilized. T
he validation of the AIS was based on its administration to 299 subjects: 1
05 primary insomniacs, 144 psychiatric patients and 50 non-patient controls
. Results: Regarding internal consistency, for both versions of the scale,
the Cronbach's alpha was around 0.90 and the mean item-total correlation co
efficient was about 0.70. Moreover, in the factor analysis, the scale emerg
ed as a sole component. The test-retest reliability correlation coefficient
was found almost 0.90 at a 1-week interval. As far as external validity is
concerned, the correlations of the AIS-8 and AIS-5 with the Sleep Problems
Scale were 0.90 and 0.85, respectively. Conclusion: The high measures of c
onsistency, reliability, and validity of the AIS make it an invaluable tool
in sleep research and clinical practice. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. Al
l rights reserved.