Matthew W. Lewis

Response Times for the CAGE Short-MAST, AUDIT, and JELLINEK Alcohol Scales

The CAGE alcohol screening tool has been touted as a good choice for clinical settings because of its brevity. We administered the CAGE and three other alcohol screening instruments (the Short-MAST, AUDIT, and JELLINEK) by microcomputer to 296 clients at a drinking driver treatment program and three of the four scales to a second sample of 270 clients from six drinking driver treatment programs. The average response times for the CAGE were 31 and 32 sec, respectively, in the first and second samples. The average response time for the JELLINEK was approximately five times longer than it was for the CAGE; response time for the AUDIT averaged four times longer; and response time for the Short-MAST was two and a half times as long. The estimated reliability of the CAGE was the lowest and its standard error of measurement was the highest of the four scales. We recommend the Short-MAST as the tool of choice if the extra minute of administration time it requires in comparison with the CAGE is not critical.

Analysis of the roles of "serious games" in helping teach health-related knowledge and skills and in changing behavior.

Researchers are developing sophisticated games specifically targeted to teach health-related knowledge and skills and to change health-related behaviors. Although these interventions, generally called “serious games,” show promise, there has been limited evaluation of their effectiveness. This article offers a broad “consumer guide” for evaluating such health education interventions. Improving the development and evaluation of health-related serious games and educating potential purchasers of such products to be knowledgeable, demanding consumers will help move the field of serious games from “looks promising” to determining where such interventions will be effective and where they will not.

A Microcomputer Assessment System [MAS] for Administering Computer-Based Surveys: Preliminary Results from Administration to Clients at an Impaired-Driver Treatment Program

The Microcomputer Assessment System (MAS), written in C language, allows a researcher to design and administer computer-based surveys by manipulating ASCII text files and requires no knowledge of a traditional programming language. The system was designed to provide maximum user flexibility: MAS allows both multiple-choice and open-ended (fill-in) questions and allows control over text color, allowable answers, and summary output. MAS also assesses response latency and includes support for random assignment of different instruments to respondents. MAS runs under MS-DOS 3.0 or higher, requires 640K of RAM, a color screen (EGA or better), and an extended keyboard. Preliminary results from an application of MAS to a sample of. 121 clients at an impaired-driver treatment program are summarized.