Using daily reports to measure drinking and drinking patterns

doi:10.1016/S0899-3289(00)00040-7

Journal of Substance Abuse

Volume 12, Issues 1–2, Autumn 2000, Pages 51-65

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0899-3289(00)00040-7 Get rights and content

Abstract

Daily measurements of drinking are used to measure alcohol consumption, validate retrospective questionnaires, and examine associations between drinking and other behaviors. The advantages of using daily reports include reducing retrospective biases and forgetting of drinking occasions; disadvantages include increased costs and potential for reactivity. Methodological issues to consider in using daily reports include reporting method (written, telephone, electronic), reporting interval, data collection period, respondent attrition, and missing data. Compared to retrospective reports, daily reports result in more reported drinking occasions but similar average quantity consumed, and correlations between retrospective and daily measures are generally high. The utility of daily reports depends on the research question and the purpose of the measurements.

Section snippets

Strengths and limitations of daily reporting methods

As a data collection technique, using daily reports has both advantages and disadvantages when compared to retrospective questionnaires Roghmann & Haggerty, 1972, Stone et al., 1991, Tennen et al., 1991, Verbrugge, 1980. Daily reporting generally results in higher levels of reported behavior, especially of relatively commonplace behaviors that are easily forgotten Roghmann & Haggerty, 1972, Verbrugge, 1980, and these higher levels are often assumed to be more accurate (Verbrugge, 1980). Because

Data collection methods

Daily reports of events or behaviors can be made in three ways (Wheeler & Reis, 1991). In interval-contingent recording, participants report on their experience at regular predetermined intervals (for example, every day). The reports usually cover what happened during the previous interval. Signal-contingent recording requires that participants make a report when they are signaled by the investigator (via a pager or other electronic device). These signals can be sent at random or fixed

Reporting interval

The choice of the reporting interval depends on the length of time that is theoretically important and the period that participants can report accurately (Stone et al., 1991). For convenience, many studies use a day as the reporting interval, with participants reporting at the end of the day about events that occurred throughout that day. For transient phenomena such as moods, multiple assessments each day are more appropriate; alternatively, participants could report once a day and note the

Validity issues

Because daily reports are assumed to be more accurate than alternative measures Armstrong et al., 1992, Verbrugge, 1980, they are often used to validate other measures, primarily retrospective questionnaires. However, because daily reports are not perfectly valid, comparisons of daily reports to other measures do not assess validity but rather intermethod reliability, a “measure of the ability of two different instruments that measure the same underlying exposure to yield similar results on the

Results of studies that compare daily reports to retrospective questionnaires

Nearly 30 published studies have compared daily reports with retrospective measures of alcohol use (see listing in Appendix A). Retrospective measures used in these comparisons include:

•
7-day recall, in which participants recall their drinking on each day of the previous week Corti et al., 1990, Gerstel et al., 1980a, Gerstel et al., 1980b, Lemmens et al., 1988, Lemmens et al., 1992, Samo et al., 1989, Whitty & Jones, 1992.
•
A quantity–frequency (QF) or quantity–frequency–variability (QFV)

Summary and conclusions

Given the costs of daily data collection, the demands on participants, and the possibility of reactivity, we may ask whether collection of this type of data is worthwhile. The answer depends on the purpose for which the reports are used. For simply measuring drinking frequency, quantity, or volume, daily reports may not be necessary: Retrospective estimates usually capture levels of drinking fairly well, although less well for heavy or very infrequent drinkers. Validity of retrospective

Acknowledgements

Preparation of this paper was supported by grants no. AA09701 and no. K02 AA0183 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

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Using daily reports to measure drinking and drinking patterns

Abstract

Section snippets

Strengths and limitations of daily reporting methods

Data collection methods

Reporting interval

Validity issues

Results of studies that compare daily reports to retrospective questionnaires

Summary and conclusions

Acknowledgements

Addictive Behaviors

Addictive Behaviors

Journal of the American Dietetic Association

Journal of the American Dietetic Association

Drug and Alcohol Dependence

Journal of Clinical Epidemiology

Drug and Alcohol Dependence

Journal of Psychiatric Research

Drug and Alcohol Dependence

Addictive Behaviors

An overview of techniques and problems in the measurement of alcohol consumption

Principles of exposure measurement in epidemiology

How to ask questions about drinking and sex: response effects in measuring consumer behavior

Journal of Marketing Research

Levels and patterns of alcohol consumption using timeline follow-back, daily diaries and real-time “electronic interviews”

Journal of Studies on Alcohol

Ecological momentary assessment in a behavioral drinking moderation training program

Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology

Comparison of 7-day retrospective and prospective alcohol consumption diaries in a female population in Perth, Western Australia — methodological issues

British Journal of Addiction

Validity and reliability of the experience sampling method

Large-scale social surveys: perspectives, problems, and prospects

Behavioral Science

Agreement between two dietary methods in the measurement of alcohol consumption

Journal of Studies on Alcohol

Agreement between two dietary methods in reported intake of beer, wine and liquor

Journal of Studies on Alcohol

Young adults' coping style as a predictor of their alcohol use and response to daily events

Journal of Youth and Adolescence

Drinking practices recorded by a diary method

Quarterly Journal of Studies on Alcohol

The reliability of drinking estimates obtained with two data collection methods

Journal of Studies on Alcohol

The assessment of alcohol consumption by a simple self-administered questionnaire

American Journal of Epidemiology

Validation of a dietary questionnaire used in a large-scale prospective cohort study on diet and cancer

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Alcohol consumption, female sexual behavior and contraceptive use

Journal of Studies on Alcohol

A comparison of a prospective diary and two summary recall techniques for recording alcohol consumption

British Journal of Addiction

The relative costs and benefits of telephone interviews vs. self-administered diaries for daily data collection

Evaluation Review

Validity of questionnaire information on frequency of coitus

American Journal of Epidemiology

Diary keeping in asthma: comparison of written and electronic methods

British Medical Journal

Reliability of retrospective assessments of sexual HIV risk behavior: a comparison of biweekly, three-month, and twelve-month self-reports

AIDS Education and Prevention

Alcohol surveys with high and low coverage rate: a comparative analysis of survey strategies in the alcohol field

Journal of Studies on Alcohol

Affect intensity and reactions to daily life events

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology