Assessing craving in cocaine and cocaine base paste users: validation of the Cocaine Craving Questionnaire-Brief in a Chilean sample

TL;DR

This study validates a questionnaire to measure cocaine and cocaine base paste craving in Chile, showing it is reliable and works for both substances.

Contribution

First validation of the Cocaine Craving Questionnaire-Brief for both cocaine and CBP users in a Chilean sample.

Findings

The CCQ-Brief has a unifactorial structure with high internal consistency in a Chilean sample.

Craving scores correlate with impulsivity, impaired control, and use frequency for both cocaine and CBP.

The CCQ-Brief performs equivalently for cocaine and CBP users, supporting its applicability in both contexts.

Abstract

One of the principal components of substance use treatment is the assessment of craving, as it is highly associated with relapse after treatment. The Cocaine Craving Questionnaire-Brief (CCQ-Brief) has emerged as a commonly used tool in the field, relevant in a context like South America, where cocaine and cocaine base paste (CBP) consumption are critical public health issues.

This study aimed to validate the CCQ-Brief in a Chilean sample, exploring for the first time its applicability in both cocaine and CBP use.

Adults in substance use treatment (N = 439, 71,3% male) completed the CCQ-Brief, assessing craving for cocaine and CBP over the past 30 days. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to test the CCQ-Brief one-factor structure. Convergent validity was analyzed through correlations with related constructs, including impaired control, impulsivity facets, frequency of cocaine/CBP use and related symptomatology.

CFA supported CCQ-Brief one-factor structure, with high internal consistency (α = 0.92 and ω = 0.94 for the 10-item version). Factorial invariance analysis showed that the CCQ-Brief performs equivalently across cocaine and CBP users. Craving scores were moderately to strongly correlated with impaired control dimensions, impulsivity facets, cocaine/CBP use and related symptomatology.

These results show evidence of the CCQ-Brief as a reliable and valid instrument for general craving of cocaine and CBP in a Chilean context, being the first version of the CCQ-Brief that confirms its unifactorial dimension with all its 10 items in the country.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13722-026-00647-5.

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