Protective behavioural strategies (PBS), or drinking control strategies, are specific behaviours one can utilize to minimize the harmful consequences of alcohol consumption. As there is not currently a standard measure of PBS, the goal of the present study was to examine the factor structure and concurrent validity of three scales designed to assess PBS: Protective Behavioural Strategies Scale (PBSS; Martens, M. P., Ferrier, A. G., Sheehy, M. J., Corbett, K., Anderson, D. A., & Simmons, A., 2005 Development of the Protective Behavioural Strategies Survey. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 66, p. 698-705), Protective Behavioural Strategies Measure (Novik, M. G., & Boekeloo, B. O., 2011, Dimensionality and psychometric analysis of an alcohol protective behavioural strategies scale. Journal of Drug Education, 41, p. 65-78, http://dx.doi.org/10.2190/DE.41.1.d), and the Strategy Questionnaire (SQ); (Sugarman, D. E., & Carey, K. B., 2007), The relationship between drinking control strategies and college student alcohol use. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 21, p. 338-345, http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0893-164X.21.3.338). In a sample of college students (n = 291), the authors used confirmatory factor analysis to examine the proposed factor structures of each scale. Although the theorized three-factor structure fit the data moderately well for the PBSS, the theorized factor structures for the Protective Behavioural Strategies Measure and SQ did not fit the data well. Further, the composite scores from the PBSS were all significantly negatively correlated with alcohol-related problems, whereas the composites of the SQ were not significantly correlated with alcohol-related problems. Although there is evidence in favour of 1 PBS measure over others, the authors discuss broader issues related to assessment of PBS. The different instructions, response scales, and time intervals are considered for various PBS measures in terms of how they relate to the advancement of PBS research. (Author/publisher)
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