Modeling the Severity of Drinking Consequences in First-Year College Women: An Item Response Theory Analysis of the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index

The present study examined the latent continuum of alcohol-related negative consequences among first-year college women using methods from item response theory and classical test theory. Participants (N = 315) were college women in their freshman year who reported consuming any alcohol in the past 90 days and who completed assessments of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related negative consequences using the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index. Item response theory analyses showed poor model fit for five items identified in the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index. Two-parameter item response theory logistic models were applied to the remaining 18 items to examine estimates of item difficulty (i.e., severity) and discrimination parameters. The item difficulty parameters ranged from 0.591 to 2.031, and the discrimination parameters ranged from 0.321 to 2.371. Classical test theory analyses indicated that the omission of the five misfit items did not significantly alter the psychometric properties of the construct. Findings suggest that those consequences that had greater severity and discrimination parameters may be used as screening items to identify female problem drinkers at risk for an alcohol use disorder.