Addiction Potential Scale vs Addiction Severity Index
The Addiction Potential Scale (APS) and the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) are both used to measure substance abuse. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages, but they both work together to determine not only who has the potential to become addicted to alcohol and drugs, but also the severity of the addiction. Both are critical to assessing a person’s addiction, or likeliness to develop an addiction, so that the individual can be treated properly or informed on how to prevent the addiction from occurring in the first place.
What is the Addiction Potential Scale?
The Addiction Potential Scale predicts addictive disorders by identifying personality traits, along with lifestyle patterns …show more content…
The test comes in two forms, pencil and paper, and on the computer. The test is relatively short, thirty-nine items, and usually does not take long to complete. It can be self-administered, or it can be administered by someone on the administration staff who has had the proper training required. The test is either scored by the computer, if the computer was the chosen form to take the test, or by a clinician (Weed et al., 1992).
Disadvantages of the Addiction Potential Scale
There are few disadvantages with the Addiction Potential Scale, but each test has its drawbacks. The main disadvantage with the Addiction Potential Scale is that every test has some degree of error. This test is not always 100% accurate, no test is, and so every once in a while it could say that an individual has a high chance of abusing drugs and alcohol, when really it might not be that high. Another disadvantage is that the Addiction Potential Scale does not evaluate alcoholism directly, the test was only created to separate substance abusers, from non-abusers. (Textbook) If an individual was to test and receive a low score, saying that the chances of becoming addicted were not very high, might be misinterpreted and the person might become care-free about his/her actions, and become addicted to drugs or
The Addiction Potential Scale (APS) and the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) are both used to measure substance abuse. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages, but they both work together to determine not only who has the potential to become addicted to alcohol and drugs, but also the severity of the addiction. Both are critical to assessing a person’s addiction, or likeliness to develop an addiction, so that the individual can be treated properly or informed on how to prevent the addiction from occurring in the first place.
What is the Addiction Potential Scale?
The Addiction Potential Scale predicts addictive disorders by identifying personality traits, along with lifestyle patterns …show more content…
The test comes in two forms, pencil and paper, and on the computer. The test is relatively short, thirty-nine items, and usually does not take long to complete. It can be self-administered, or it can be administered by someone on the administration staff who has had the proper training required. The test is either scored by the computer, if the computer was the chosen form to take the test, or by a clinician (Weed et al., 1992).
Disadvantages of the Addiction Potential Scale
There are few disadvantages with the Addiction Potential Scale, but each test has its drawbacks. The main disadvantage with the Addiction Potential Scale is that every test has some degree of error. This test is not always 100% accurate, no test is, and so every once in a while it could say that an individual has a high chance of abusing drugs and alcohol, when really it might not be that high. Another disadvantage is that the Addiction Potential Scale does not evaluate alcoholism directly, the test was only created to separate substance abusers, from non-abusers. (Textbook) If an individual was to test and receive a low score, saying that the chances of becoming addicted were not very high, might be misinterpreted and the person might become care-free about his/her actions, and become addicted to drugs or