Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7fkt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T20:09:06.196Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Benzodiazepine Dependence Questionnaire: Development, Reliability and Validity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Andrew J. Baillie  and
Richard P. Mattick
Andrew J. Baillie*
Affiliation:
National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia
Richard P. Mattick
Affiliation:
National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia
*
Andrew Baillie Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety Disorders, St Vincent's Hospital, 299 Forbes Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010, Australia
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background

A short self-report questionnaire was developed to assess dependence on benzodiazepines (BZDs), the Benzodiazepine Dependence Questionnaire (BDEPQ). The BDEPQ is the first scale to assess dependence on BZDs comprehensively, as all existing scales focus exclusively on withdrawal symptoms.

Method

To evaluate its internal consistency and construct validity, 302 regular BZD users were recruited from media advertisements and assessed on a number of measures. The BDEPQ was compared with measures of depression, anxiety, sleep quality, BZD withdrawal symptoms and neuroticism to assess its construct validity. A 3–4 month follow-up was conducted to assess the ability of the BDEPQ to predict changes in BZD consumption and future BZD withdrawal.

Results

The BDEPQ was found to have high internal consistency and to be relatively stable over the follow-up period. Three subscales were identified, each with good internal consistency and temporal stability. The BDEPQ was able to predict the severity of withdrawal symptoms.

Conclusion

The BDEPQ was found to be a reliable and valid self-report instrument for the assessment of BZD dependence in samples approximating the general population of people using BZDs.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 169 , Issue 3 , September 1996 , pp. 276 - 281
Copyright
Copyright © 1996 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ashton, H. (1984) Benzodiazepine withdrawal: an unfinished story. British Medical Journal, 288, 1135–1140.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Australian Bureau of Statistics (1991) 1989–90 National Health Survey: Unit Record Data. Canberra: Australian Bureau of Statistics.Google Scholar
Baillie, A. (1996) Manual for the Benzodiazepine Dependence Questionnaire (BDEPQ). Technical Report no. 33. Kensington, Australia: National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales.Google Scholar
Beck, A. T. & Steer, R. A. (1987) Beck Depression Inventory: Manual San Antonio, CA: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.Google Scholar
Beck, A. T. & Steer, R. A. (1990) Beck Anxiety Inventory: Manual. San Antonio, CA: The Psychological Corporation, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.Google Scholar
Busto, U. E., Sykora, K. & Sellers, E. M. (1989) A clinical scale to assess benzodiazepine withdrawal Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 9, 412–416.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Buysse, D. J., Reynolds, C. F., Monk, T. H., et al (1989) The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index: a new instrument for psychiatric practice and research. Psychiatry Research, 28, 193–213.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Edwards, G., Arif, A. & Hodgson, R. (1981) Nomenclature and classification of drug and alcohol related problems: a WHO Memorandum. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 59, 225–242.Google ScholarPubMed
Eysenck, H. & Eysenck, S. B. (1975) Manual of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (Junior and Adult). London: Hodder and Stoughton Ltd.Google Scholar
Golombok, S., Higgitt, A., Fonagy, P., et al (1987) A follow-up study of patients treated for benzodiazepine dependence. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 68, 141–149.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hanley, J. A. & McNeil, B. J. (1982) The meaning and use of the area under a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Radiology, 143, 29–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hanley, J. A. & McNeil, B. J. (1983) A method of comparing the area under receiver operating characteristic curves derived from the same cases. Radiology, 148, 839–843.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Merz, W. A. & Ballmer, U. (1983) Symptoms of the barbiturate/benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome in health volunteers: standardized assessment by a newly developed self-rating scale. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 15, 71–84.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nunnally, J. (1967) Psychometric Theory. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company.Google Scholar
Pecknold, J. C., McClure, D. J., Fleuri, D., et al (1982) Benzodiazepine withdrawal effects. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacological and Biological Psychiatry, 6, 517–522.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Petursson, H. & Lader, M. (1984) Dependence on Tranquillizers. Maudsley Monograph no. 28. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Rickels, K., Schweizer, E., Case, W. G., et al (1990) Long-term therapeutic use of benzodiazepines: I. Effects of abrupt discontinuation. Archives of General Psychiatry, 47, 899–907.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stockwell, T., Murphy, D. & Hodgson, R. (1983) The Severity of Alcohol Dependence Questionnaire: Its use, reliability and validity. British Journal of Addiction, 78, 145–155.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tyrer, P., Murphy, S. & Riley, P. (1990) The Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Symptom Questionnaire. Journal of Affective Disorden, 19, 53–61.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
World Health Organization (1990) CIDI-Core: Composite International Diagnostic Interview Core Version 1.0–November 1990. Researchers Copy. Geneva: WHO.Google Scholar
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.