Psychometric Properties of Persian Version of the Amphetamine Withdrawal Questionnaire Version 2 (AWQV2) in Patients with Methamphetamine-Type Substance Use Disorder

Background: No standard selfreport instrument for withdrawal symptoms is available in Iran. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the 10item Amphetamine Withdrawal questionnaire version 2 (AWQV2). Methods: A sample of 388 methamphetamine addicts (215 females and 173 males) referred to addiction recovery centers and psychiatric ward of Farabi Hospital in Kermanshah. A twostage random sampling method was used. The reliability and internal consistency of the AWQV2 items were examined using Cronbach’s alpha and testretest reliability, respectively, and the instrument validity of the AWQV2 was measured using construct validity and convergent validity. Results: The AWQV2 had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.72. Factor analysis using the main component analysis with a varimax rotation introduced three factors of hyperarousal, anxiety, and reversed vegetative symptoms. These factors explained 0.58 of the total variance. The coefficient of testretest reliability at a 2week interval was equal to 0.77. The convergent validity of the AWQV2 was examined by simultaneously administering the Advanced Warning of Relapse (AWARE) questionnaire to 40 subjects, with a correlation coefficient of 0.81. Conclusions: Based on the results, the AWQV2 has very good psychometric properties and may be used in research and therapeutic interventions.