Adaptation and validation of the Turkish version of The Brief Screener for Substance and Behavioral Addiction (SSBA)

TL;DR

This paper validates a Turkish version of a screening tool for substance and behavioral addictions, showing it is reliable and effective for clinical use.

Contribution

The study adapts and validates the SSBA screening tool for use in Turkish populations, confirming its psychometric properties.

Findings

The Turkish SSBA has excellent internal consistency and a validated ten-factor structure.

The SSBA effectively distinguishes between clinical and general groups based on addiction severity.

Convergent and divergent validity were confirmed through expected correlation patterns.

Abstract

Behavioral addictions are increasingly recognized due to high prevalence and shared biopsychosocial features with substance use disorders. The Brief Screener for Substance and Behavioral Addictions (SSBA) is a tool designed to assess four substance-related and six behavioral addictions within a unified framework. This study aimed to validate the Turkish version of the SSBA in clinical and general groups (N = 193). Internal consistency was excellent (α = 0.94 total; ≥0.85 per domain). Exploratory factor analysis largely supported its original ten-factor structure. Convergent and divergent validity were supported by expected correlation patterns. The SSBA effectively distinguished individuals based on engagement and problematic use, with higher scores observed in the clinical group for substance and gambling domains. Overall, Turkish SSBA demonstrates strong psychometric properties, supporting its use as a brief, reliable screening instrument for the assessment of substance and behavioral addictions in clinical practice and research settings.

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