Psychometric Performance of the Cannabis Use Disorders Identification Test– Revised (CUDIT-R) in an Youth Clinical Sample

TL;DR

The study tested a cannabis use screening tool in youth and found it reliable and valid for identifying problematic use.

Contribution

The study validates the CUDIT-R screening tool for youth with heavy cannabis use.

Findings

The CUDIT-R showed good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.76).

The tool demonstrated strong discriminant validity with an area under the ROC curve of 0.96.

The CUDIT-R is a reliable and valid screening tool for youth with cannabis use disorders.

Abstract

The Cannabis Use Disorders Identification Test–Revised (CUDIT-R) is an eight-item screening tool designed to identify problematic cannabis use. The present study intended to assess the psychometric properties of the measure in a youth sample. N = 76 participants completed the CUDIT-R and a measure of cannabis consumption. All participants underwent an assessment for a current cannabis use disorder using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV. The CUDIT-R exhibited good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.76) and concurrent validity with a cannabis consumption measure. Discriminant validity was demonstrated with an area under the ROC curve of 0.96. The CUDIT-R proved to be a reliable and valid screening tool amongst youth with heavy cannabis use, which suggests the scale has clinical utility.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10597-025-01494-5.