Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test

The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) is a simple screening method developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) for the rapid and early detection of people at risk of alcohol use. It consists of a total of 10 items, the first three of which focus on the level of alcohol consumption, the next three items relate to the presence of possible symptoms of dependence and the last four focus on the consequences of alcohol abuse and the problems that excessive drinking can cause. The questionnaire has a version for administration by a professional as a structured interview as well as for self-completion. More information can be found here.

Length of completion

The entire questionnaire takes approximately 5 minutes to complete.

Individualized feedback for the respondent

After completing the questionnaire, the respondent will find out if their alcohol consumption is normal, risky, harmful or already an addiction.

Keywords

AUDIT, alcohol, risky consumption, addiction, alcohol use, identification of impairment

Scoring and interpretation

Possible answers to questions are scored 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4 points, with the exception of questions 9 and 10, which can only be scored 0, 2, or 4 points. A sum score is used for interpretation, which ranges from 0 to 40. Whereby a score of 0 indicates a teetotaler who has never had any problems with alcohol, a score of 1-7 indicates a low-risk drinker, a score of 8-14 indicates hazardous or harmful alcohol consumption, and a score of 15 or more indicates the likelihood of alcohol dependence (moderate to severe alcohol use disorder).

References

Babor, T.F., Higgins-Biddle, J.C., Saunders, J.B., Monteiro, M.G. (2001). AUDIT: The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Guidelines for Use in Primary Care. Second Edition. World Health Organization. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/67205/WHO_MSD_MSB_01.6a.pdf?sequence=1

Saunders, J., Aasland, O., Babor, T., de la Fuente, J., & Grant, M. (1993). Development of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT): WHO Collaborative Project on Early Detection of Persons with Harmful Alcohol Consumption–II. Addiction, 88(6), 791-804. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1993.tb02093.x

Sovinová, H., & Csémy, L. (2010). The Czech audit: internal consistency, latent structure and identification of risky alcohol consumption. Central European Journal of Public Health, 18(3), 127-131. https://doi.org/10.21101/cejph.a3599