Psychometric properties of the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument (WHOQoL-BREF) in alcoholic males: A pilot study

Objective: To evaluate criterion convergent and discriminant validity of the World Health Organization Instrument (WHOQoL-BREF) in evaluating quality of life and to verify its convergent validity with the Medical Outcomes study Short-forms (SF-36) and the Symptom Check List (SCL-90) instruments in male alcohol dependent patients who seek treatment at two Brazilian treatment centers. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed, in which cases were divided in to two groups according to the severity of alcohol dependence, ascertained by the Short Form Alcohol Dependence Data scale (SADD). Results: The sample was comprised of 36 males, and 63.9% had severe dependence. Subjects with low/moderate dependence showed higher scores in all domains of the WHOQoL-BREF and in nearly all domains of the SF-36. Criterion validity and internal consistency in the WHOQoL-BREF were satisfactory. With regard to convergent validity between the WHOQoL-BREF and SF-36, most correlation coefficients were significant. Conclusions: The WHOQoL instrument proved to be satisfactory for evaluating quality of life in this sample.