Delinquent Activities Scale (DAS)
Assesses specific delinquent offenses, their frequency, age of onset/recency, and the involvement of alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs in these behaviors.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Delinquent Activities Scale (DAS) was developed by Reavy, Stein, Paiva, Quina, & Rossi (2012). It is designed to measure Delinquent behavior and substance-involved offending. The scale is intended for use with Adolescents (specifically validated for incarcerated adolescents).
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 40 items organized into 5 factors/subscales: Predatory Aggression, Stealing and Generalized Delinquency, Stealing and Impulsive Delinquency, Drug Dealing and Aggressive Behavior, Remorse.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Predatory Aggression | 4,6,8,17,18,19,20,25,26,27,28,29 | 12 |
| Stealing and Generalized Delinquency | 1,2,3,7,22,24,30,31 | 8 |
| Stealing and Impulsive Delinquency | 5,13,16,21,23,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39 | 13 |
| Drug Dealing and Aggressive Behavior | 9,10,11,12,14,15 | 6 |
| Remorse | 40 | 1 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: age_first = Age first did this, age_last = Age last did this, ever_no_substances = Ever done without alcohol/drugs involved (Yes/No), total_count = Number of times ever happened, alcohol_count = Number of times alcohol involved, marijuana_count = Number of times marijuana involved, other_drug_count = Number of times another drug involved.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 20 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.