Post-Treatment Abstinence Survivorship and Motivation for Recovery: The Predictive Validity of the Readiness to Change (RCQ) and Negative Alcohol Expectancy (NAEQ) Questionnaires

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Abstract
Two different methods of assessing alcohol-dependent clients' motivation for change or recovery on admission to a hospital-based, day-treatment alcohol problems unit were compared in their ability to predict post-treatment abstinence survivorship in a follow-up study. The Readiness-for-Change (RCQ, Heather el al., 1991) and the Negative Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaires (NAEQ, McMahon and Jones 1993b) each reliably predicted the length of time to relapse to a first drink when (i) individually and (ii) jointly included in an exponential regression analysis of survival data. RCQ and NAEQ representations of client motivation were uncorrelated and it was concluded that they must be representing different components. It was speculated that whereas the NAEQ explicitly assessed an individual's expected negative consequences following consumption, the RCQ carried out an implicit assessment additionally incorporating value judgements. Possible difficulties were identified in extending the use of the RCQ from excessive drinkers advised to reduce drinking (and for whom it was developed) to more highly dependent drinkers aiming at total abstinence, as used in the current study.