Alcohol Relief Questionnaire (ARQ)

Abstract

The Alcohol Relief Questionnaire (ARQ; Lac & Luk, 2023) is an 18-item instrument designed to assess the relief effects experienced by adult alcohol users. This measure was developed to provide a multidimensional conceptualization of relief stemming from self-medication with alcohol. The development process involved an initial set of 26 items derived from a literature review, administered to adult alcohol users in the U.S. online. Exploratory factor analysis led to a 4-factor structure with 22 items, which was further refined in a confirmatory study to an 18-item, 4-factor structure through confirmatory factor analysis. The ARQ demonstrates robust internal consistency, alongside convergent, discriminant, incremental, and criterion-related validity, making it a comprehensive tool for understanding the various facets of alcohol relief.

Keywords

Alcohol Consumption; Alcohol Relief Effects; Incremental Validity; Interpersonal Relief; Physical Relief; Psychological Relief; Self-Medication; Sleep Relief

Authors

Lac, Andrew; Luk, Jeremy W.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Alcohol Relief Questionnaire (ARQ) is to quantify and evaluate the relief effects and experiences that adult drinkers attribute to their alcohol consumption. This includes understanding the psychological, interpersonal, sleep, and physical dimensions of relief sought through drinking.

Validity

The ARQ’s validity has been thoroughly assessed across several domains:

• Convergent Validity: The ARQ demonstrated expected correlations with relevant constructs. Tension reduction expectancy showed the strongest correlation with physical relief. Sociability, liquid courage, and sexuality expectancies correlated most strongly with interpersonal relief. Alcohol positive affect significantly correlated with both psychological and physical relief.

• Discriminant Validity: The measure successfully discriminated from theoretically distinct constructs. Risk and aggression expectancy correlated most strongly with psychological relief, while cognitive and behavioral impairment expectancy and self-perception expectancy did not show significant correlations with alcohol relief. Alcohol negative affect significantly correlated only with sleep relief.

• Criterion-Related Validity: Drink frequency and drink quantity significantly correlated with each of the four alcohol relief subscales and the overall relief score, indicating that the ARQ is related to actual drinking behaviors.

• Incremental Validity: The overall alcohol relief scale incrementally explained alcohol use and associated problems beyond what could be accounted for by positive and negative alcohol expectancies and alcohol affect alone, highlighting its unique contribution to understanding alcohol-related constructs.

Reliability

Internal Consistency: The internal consistency of the ARQ was evaluated using Cronbach’s alpha, with the following results:

• Psychological Relief: α = .93

• Interpersonal Relief: α = .96

• Sleep Relief: α = .89

• Physical Relief: α = .89

• Overall Relief: α = .89

These high alpha values indicate excellent internal consistency for both the subscales and the overall measure.

Factor Analysis

The development of the ARQ involved a rigorous factor analytic process:

• Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA): An initial EFA revealed a correlated four-factor structure comprising psychological relief, interpersonal relief, sleep relief, and physical relief. During this phase, four items with low factor loadings and high cross-loadings across multiple factors were removed, resulting in a 22-item measure.

• Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA): In a subsequent confirmatory study, the four-factor model with 22 items yielded acceptable fit indices: χ² = 501.06, df = 203, CFI = .94, TLI = .93, RMSEA [90% CI] = .05 [.05, .06], AIC = 36,317.77. Further refinement involved removing four additional items. The final four-factor model, consisting of 18 items, demonstrated even stronger fit indices: χ² = 317.43, df = 129, CFI = .95, TLI = .95, RMSEA [90% CI] = .05 [.05, .06], AIC = 29,417.75.

Instrument: Alcohol Relief Questionnaire (ARQ)

• Test Type: Original Instrument/Questionnaire

• Format: The ARQ consists of 18 items. Response options are provided on a 7-point Likert-type scale, ranging from 1 (definitely false) to 7 (definitely true). The full scale is: 1 (definitely false), 2 (mostly false), 3 (somewhat false), 4 (neither true nor false), 5 (somewhat true), 6 (mostly true), and 7 (definitely true).

• Language Available: English

• Population Group: Human (Male and Female)

• Age Group: Adulthood (18 years and older), including Young Adulthood (18-29 years), Thirties (30-39 years), Middle Age (40-64 years), and Aged (65 years and older).

• Population Details: The measure was developed and validated using adult alcohol users residing in the United States.

• Test Methodology: The development and validation of the ARQ involved a comprehensive methodology including Test Validity (Convergent Validity, Criterion Validity, Discriminant Validity), Test Reliability (Internal Consistency), and Factor Analysis (Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis).

Authors Including

• Author ORCID Identifier:

  • Lac, Andrew: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8035-3628

• Affiliation:

  • Lac, Andrew: University of Colorado—Colorado Springs, Department of Psychology

  • Luk, Jeremy W.: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

• Email addresses:

  • Lac, Andrew: [email protected]

• Correspondence Address:

  • Lac, Andrew: University of Colorado—Colorado Springs, Department of Psychology, 1420 Austin Bluffs Parkway, Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States, 80918, [email protected]

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

• Permissions: May be used for Research/Teaching purposes.

• Fee: No fee is required for its use.

• Test Year: 2023

Files

No file is available.

References

Lac, A., & Luk, J. W. (2023). The Alcohol Relief Questionnaire: Development and validation of a multidimensional scale to measure the psychological, interpersonal, sleep, and physical relief effects of drinking. Psychological Assessment, 35(6), 533–545. doi:10.1037/pas0001232

Items of the Alcohol Relief Questionnaire (ARQ)

The Alcohol Relief Questionnaire (ARQ) consists of 18 items designed to capture four specific factors related to alcohol relief:

• Psychological Relief: Items pertaining to internal emotional and mental states.

• Interpersonal Relief: Items related to social interactions and relationships.

• Sleep Relief: Items concerning the impact of alcohol on sleep.

• Physical Relief: Items addressing the physical sensations and bodily comfort experienced from alcohol.

The Alcohol Relief Questionnaire (Lac & Luk, 2023)

Instructions: Consider the occasions you have consumed alcohol. Indicate the extent that each statement is true or false for you.

Scoring of The Alcohol Relief Questionnaire

• Overall Scale Score: Mean of All 18 Items

• Four Subscale Scores:

  • Psychological Relief Subscale: Mean of Items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

  • Interpersonal Relief Subscale: Mean of Items 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

  • Sleep Relief Subscale: Mean of Items 13, 14, 15

  • Physical Relief Subscale: Mean of Items 16, 17, 18

Reference

Lac, A., & Luk, J. W. (2023). The Alcohol Relief Questionnaire: Development and Validation of a Multidimensional Scale to Measure the Psychological, Interpersonal, Sleep, and Physical Relief Effects of Drinking. Psychological Assessment.