Development of an HIV/STD Screening Index to Measure HIV/STD Risk in Adolescents

The development of an adolescent screening assessing risk of exposure to HIV/sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and its psychometric evaluation is described. An initial set of 31 items was administered to 1418 adolescents. Item and factor analyses resulted in an 18-item HIV/STD risk screening index. Reliability analysis indicated favorable evidence for index internal consistency (alpha = .86) and temporal stability over 6 to 10 days (r = .92). Construct validity was supported by the ability to use the index to differentiate between groups that differed in history of HIV/STD. Convergent validity was evidenced by significant correlations of the index with conceptually related measures. The screening index shows favorable psychometric evidence among diverse samples of adolescents.