DAPP-BQ Questionnaire Validity Determination (Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology) in a Population of Female Drug-Addicted Prisoners

This study discusses determining validity of DAPP-BQ questionnaire (dimensional assessment of personality pathology-basic questionnaire) among female drug-addicted prisoners. The main question is codified as does the questionnaire of personality pathology dimensions among drug-addicted women in Iran have desirable psychological features or not?. The present study is classified under psychological research with an emphasis on psychometrics, and inner homology and stability coefficient of the questionnaire was considered in addition to differential validity and structural validity. The statistical population of the present study includes all female drug-addicted prisoners of different age groups. The statistical population in this study included 240 persons (120 drug-addicted and 120 normal) whereby targeted convenience sampling method was used to select the samples of the study. In addition to utilization of descriptive statistics with t statistical model of the two independent groups, the average values of drug-addicted and normal groups were compared in line with differential validity. For structural validity, the confirmatory factor analysis was used. Moreover, in order to determine the validity coefficient of the questionnaire with an emphasis on inner homology of the questions, both Cronbach’s alpha and split half methods were used. Finally, findings showed that the questionnaire of personality pathology dimensions has differential validity, and all personality questionnaire measures may differentiate between drug-addicted and normal women, except rejection and stimulation. It was also determined, after handling the questionnaire’s validity, that all three methods of Cronbach’s alpha, split half (to study inner homology), and test-retest (to check stability) had validity coefficients above 0.75 percent which shows a desirable value coefficient.