AUDIT-C Alcohol Consumption Screen

AUDIT-CPhysical Health

3 items

The three consumption items of the WHO AUDIT, used as a brief screen for hazardous drinking. Suitable as a one-time baseline measure rather than a repeated EMA item.

Special-category data

Some items here collect special-category data under GDPR Art. 9 (such as racial or ethnic origin, or health data). Collecting them requires an explicit lawful basis and consent text that covers them — check your ethics approval before use.

Scoring

Sum all items (0–12). Conventional cut-offs for a positive screen are 4 or more for men and 3 or more for women, though thresholds vary by population — state the cut-off you use.

Citation

Bush, K., Kivlahan, D. R., McDonell, M. B., Fihn, S. D., & Bradley, K. A. (1998). The AUDIT alcohol consumption questions (AUDIT-C): an effective brief screening test for problem drinking. Archives of Internal Medicine, 158(16), 1789–1795.

doi:10.1001/archinte.158.16.1789

License: Derived from the WHO AUDIT; free for research and clinical use.

Items (3)

#1choiceArt. 9

How often do you have a drink containing alcohol?

Never · Monthly or less · 2–4 times a month · 2–3 times a week · 4 or more times a week

#2choiceArt. 9

How many standard drinks containing alcohol do you have on a typical day when you are drinking?

1 or 2 · 3 or 4 · 5 or 6 · 7 to 9 · 10 or more

#3choiceArt. 9

How often do you have six or more drinks on one occasion?

Never · Less than monthly · Monthly · Weekly · Daily or almost daily

Use this scale in your own ESM/EMA study — embed it as a survey within SMAAT.