Preliminary validity and reliability testing of a structured clinical interview for pathological gambling

Jon E. Grant,
Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown Medical School and Butler Hospital, Providence, RI 02906, USA

Marvin A. Steinberg
Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling, Guilford, CT, USA

Suck Won Kim
Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA

Bruce J. Rounsaville
Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

Marc N. Potenza
Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

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ABSTRACT
The psychometric properties of a clinician-administered, DSM-IV-based, structured clinical interview for pathological gambling (SCI-PG) were examined. Seventy-two consecutive subjects requesting treatment for gambling problems were administered the SCI-PG. Reliability and validity were determined. Classification accuracy was examined using longitudinal course of illness. The SCI-PG demonstrated excellent inter-rater and test-retest reliability. Concurrent validity was observed with the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS). Discriminant validity was observed with measures of anxiety and depression. The SCI-PG demonstrated both high sensitivity and specificity based on longitudinal assessment. The SCI-PG demonstrated excellent reliability and validity in diagnosing PG in subjects presenting with gambling problems. These findings require replication in other groups to examine their generalizability.

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Received 15 August 2003; accepted 20 May 2004. Available online 18 August 2004.
©2004 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

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