Binge consumption contributes substantially to the occurrence of alcohol‐related harm. Despite its importance, binge drinking is not well defined in the literature. The present study examines the proportions of respondents identified as binge drinkers by three separate measures: a 1‐week retrospective drinking diary (RD), the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), and a quantity/frequency (QF) question. Overall, AUDIT detected the highest proportion of binge drinkers, followed by QF and RD. There was also good agreement between QF and RD, as well as QF and AUDIT. Ultimately, the measure of choice should be that which provides information most appropriate to the purposes of each study.
RedmanS, Sanson‐FisherRW, WilkinsonC, FaheyPP and GibberdRW. 1987. Agreement between two measures of alcohol consumption. J Stud Alcohol, 48: 104–108.
2.
RoomR. 1990. “Measuring alcohol consumption in the United States: methods and rationales”. In Research Advances in Alcohol and Drug Problems, Edited by: KozlowskiLT, AnnisHM, CappellHD, GlaserFB, GoodstadtMS, IsraelY, KalantH, SellersEM and VingilisER. 39–30. New York: Plenum Press.
3.
WebbGR, RedmanS, Sanson‐FisherRW and GibberdRW. 1990. Comparison of a quantity‐frequency method and a diary method of measuring alcohol consumption. J Stud Alcohol, 51: 271–277.
4.
SobellLC and SobellMB. 1992. “Timeline follow‐back: A technique for assessing self‐reported alcohol consumption”. In Measuring Alcohol Consumption: Psychosocial and Biochemical Methods, Edited by: LittenRZ and AllenJP. 41–72. Clifton, NJ: Humana Press.
5.
SobellLC and SobellMB. 1995. “Alcohol consumption measures”. In Assessing Alcohol Problems A Guide for Clinicians and Researchers, Edited by: AllenJP and ColumbusM. 55–73. Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
6.
KnupferG. 1984. The risks of drunkenness (on ebrietas resurrecta): A comparison of frequent intoxication indices and of population sub‐groups as to problem risks. Br J Addict, 79: 185–196.
7.
Sanchez‐CraigM and IsraelY. 1985. Pattern of alcohol consumption associated with self‐identified problem drinking. Am J Public Health, 75: 178–180.
8.
AndaRF, WilliamsonDF and RemingtonPL. 1988. Alcohol and fatal injuries among U.S. adults. JAMA, 260: 2529–2532.
9.
KranzlerHR, BaborTF and LauermanRJ. 1990. Problems associated with average alcohol consumption and frequency of intoxication in a medical population. Alcohol Clin Exp Res, 14: 119–126.
10.
SingleE and WortleyS. 1993. Drinking in various settings as it relates to demographic variables and level of consumption: Findings from a national survey in Canada. J Stud Alcohol, 54: 590–599.
11.
RoomR, BondyS and FerrisJ. 1995. The risk of harm to oneself from drinking, Canada, 1989. Addiction, 90: 499–513.
12.
BondyS. 1996. Overview of studies on drinking patterns and consequences. Addiction, 91: 1663–1674.
13.
MidanikL, TarnT, GreenfieldT and CaetanoR. 1996. Risk functions for alcohol‐related problems in a 1988 U.S. national sample. Addiction, 91: 1427–1438.
14.
RehmJ, AshleyMJ, RoomR, SingleE, BondyS, FerrenceR and GiesbrechtN. 1996. On the emerging paradigm of drinking patterns and their social and health consequences. Addiction, 91: 1615–1621.
15.
RossowI. 1996. Alcohol‐related violence: The impact of drinking pattern and drinking context. Addiction, 91: 1651–1661.
16.
StockwellT, HawksD, LangE and RydonP. 1996. Unravelling the preventive paradox for acute alcohol problems. Drug Alcohol Rev, 15: 7–15.
17.
HaugeR and Irgens‐JensenO. 1986. The relationship between alcohol consumption, alcohol intoxication and negative consequences of drinking in four Scandinavian countries. Br J Addict, 81: 513–524.
18.
EpsteinEE, KahlerCW, McCradyBS, LewisKD and LewisS. 1995. An empirical classification of drinking patterns among alcoholics: Binge, episodic, sporadic, and steady. Addict Behav, 20: 23–41.
19.
BaborTF, LongabaughRZwebenA. 1994. Issues in the definition and measurement of drinking outcomes in alcoholism treatment research. J Stud Alcohol, 12: 101–111.
20.
WechslerH and IsaacN. 1992. ‘Binge’ drinkers at Massachusetts colleges. Prevalence, drinking style, time trends, and associated problems. JAMA, 267: 2929–2931.
21.
LiG, SmithGS and BakerS. 1994. Drinking behavior in relation to cause of death among US adults. Am J Public Health, 84: 1402–1403.
22.
National Health and Medical Research Council. 1992. Is There a Safe Level of Daily Consumption of Alcohol for Men and Women?, Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.
23.
BellJ and DimmingR. 1989. Drinking habits in Sydney's western suburbs. Aust Drug Alcohol Rev, 8: 9–13.
24.
O'CallaghanF, WilksJ and CallanVJ. 1990. Extending upon student drinking patterns in an Australian population. Drug Alcohol Rev, 9: 239–244.
25.
CanterburyRJ, GressardCF, ViewegWVR, GrossmanSJ, WestermanPS and McKelwayRB. 1991. Alcohol and cocaine use among first‐year college students. South Med J, 84: 13–21.
26.
SaundersJB, AaslandOG, BaborTF, De La FuenteJR and GrantM. 1993. Development of the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT): WHO collaborative project on early detection of persons with harmful alcohol consumption—II. Addiction, 88: 791–804.
27.
MooreL, SmithC and CatfordJ. 1994. Binge drinking: Prevalence, patterns and policy. Health Educ Res Theor Pract, 9: 497–505.
28.
NezlekJB, PilkingtonCJ and BilbroKG. 1994. Moderation in excess: Binge drinking and social interaction among college students. J Stud Alcohol, 55: 342–351.
29.
WechslerH, DavenportA, DowdallG, MoeykensB and CastilloS. 1994. Health and behavioral consequences of binge drinking in college. A national survey of students at 140 campuses. JAMA, 272: 1672–1677.
30.
WechslerH, DowdallGW, DavenportA and RimmEB. 1995. A gender‐specific measure of binge drinking among college students. Am J Public Health, 85: 982–985.
31.
DelkEW and MeilmanPW. 1996. Alcohol use among college students in Scotland compared with norms from the United States. J Am Coll Health, 44: 274–281.
32.
SchulenbergJ, O'MalleyPM, BachmanJG, WadsworthKN and JohnstonLD. 1996. Getting drunk and growing up Trajectories of frequent binge drinking during the transition to young adulthood. J Stud Alcohol, 57: 289–304.
33.
WebbGR, RedmanS, GibberdRW and Sanson‐FisherRW. 1991. The reliability and stability of a quantity‐frequency method and a diary method of measuring alcohol consumption. Drug Alcohol Depend, 27: 223–231.
34.
ShakeshaftAP, BowmanJA and Sanson‐FisherRW. in press. A comparison of two retrospective measures of weekly alcohol consumption: diary and quantity/frequency index. Alcohol Alcohol,
35.
DaweS and MattickRP. 1997. Review of Diagnostic Screening Instruments for Alcohol and Other Drug Use and Other Psychiatric Disorders, Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.
36.
FlemingMF, BarryKL and MacDonaldR. 1991. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) in a college sample. Int J Addict, 26: 1173–1185.
37.
SchmidtA, BarryKL and FlemingMF. 1995. Detection of problem drinkers: The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). South Med J, 88: 52–59.
38.
BaborTF and Del BocaFK. 1992. “Just the facts: enhancing measurement of alcohol consumption using self‐report methods”. In Measuring Alcohol Consumption: Psychosocial and Biochemical Methods, Edited by: IittenRZ and AlienJP. 3–19. Clifton, NJ: Humana Press.
39.
WilsonA and McDonaldP. 1994. Comparison of patient questionnaire, medical record, and audio tape in assessment of health promotion in general practice consultation. BMJ, 309: 1483–1485.
40.
ClayerJR, McFarlaneAC and WrightG. 1992. Epidemiology by computer. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol, 27: 258–262.
41.
DanielsV, SomersM, OrfordJ and KirbyB. 1992. How can risk drinking amongst medical patients be modified? The effects of computer screening and advice and a self‐help manual. Behav Psychother, 20: 47–60.
42.
GavinDR, SkinnerHA and GeorgeMS. 1992. “Computerized approaches to alcohol assessment”. In Measuring Alcohol Consumption: Psychosocial and Biochemical Methods, Edited by: LittenRZ and AllenJP. 21–39. Clifton, NJ: Humana Press.
KobakKA, TaylorLVHDottlSL. 1997. A computer‐administered telephone interview to identify mental disorders. JAMA, 278: 905–910.
45.
NewellS, GirgisA and Sanson‐FisherRW. 1997. Are touchscreen computer surveys acceptable to medical oncology patients?. J Psychosoc Oncol, 15: 37–46.
46.
ShakeshaftAP, BowmanJA and Sanson‐FisherRW. 1998. Computers in community‐based drug and alcohol clinical settings: Are they acceptable to respondents?. Drug Alcohol Depend, 50: 177–180.
47.
SkinnerHA and AllenBA. 1983. Does the computer make a difference? Computerized versus face‐to‐face versus self‐report assessment of alcohol, drug, and tobacco use. J Consult Clin Psychol, 51: 267–275.
48.
BonevskiB, Sanson‐FisherRW, CampbellEM and IrelandMC. 1997. Do general practice patients find computer health risk surveys acceptable? A comparison with pen‐and‐paper method. Health Prom J Aust, 7: 100–106.
49.
BungeyJB, PolsRG, MortimerKP, FrankOR and SkinnerHA. 1989. Screening alcohol and drug use in a general practice unit: Comparison of computerized and traditional methods. Commun Health Stud, 13: 471–483.
50.
SobellLC, BrownJ, LeoGI and SobellMB. 1996. The reliability of the alcohol timeline followback when administered by telephone and by computer. Drug Alcohol Depend, 42: 49–54.
51.
MillwoodJE and McKayAM. 1978. Measurement of alcohol consumption in the Australian population. Commun Health Stud, 2: 123–132.
52.
AimTech Corporation. 1995. IconAuthor User Manual for Windows and OS/2Nashua
53.
Borland International. 1993. Using dBase IV, Scotts Valley.
54.
ByrtT, BishopJ and CarlinJB. 1993. Bias, prevalence and kappa. J Clin Epidemiol, 46: 423–429.
55.
SAS Institute Inc.1995. SAS/STAT Users Guide, Version 6.11, Cary, NC: SAS.
56.
HarfordTC. 1994. The effects of order of questions on reported alcohol consumption. Addiction, 89: 421–424.
57.
StrecherVJ, BeckerMH, ClarkNM and Prasada‐RaoP. 1989. Using patients’ descriptions of alcohol consumption, diet, medication compliance and cigarette smoking: The validity of self‐reports in research and practice. J Gen Intern Med, 4: 160–166.
58.
NewellSA. 1995. Assessing the Effectiveness of Personal Health Record Booklets at Increasing Preventive and Screening Behaviors for Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease, Thesis, Newcastle, Australia: University of Newcastle.
59.
PernanenK. 1974. “Validity of survey data on alcohol use”. In Research Advances in Alcohol and Drug Problems, Edited by: GibbensRJ, IsraelY, KalantH, PophamRE, SchmidtW and SmartRG. Vol 1, 335–374. New York: Wiley.
60.
LittleRE, SchultzFA and MandellW. 1977. Describing alcohol consumption: A comparison of three methods and a new approach. J Stud Alcohol, 38: 554–562.
61.
ConigraveKM, SaundersJB and WhitfieldJB. 1995. Diagnostic tests for alcohol consumption. Alcohol Alcohol, 30: 13–26.
62.
WilliamsGD, ProudfitAH, QuinnEA and CampbellKE. 1994. Variations in quantity‐frequency measures of alcohol consumption from a general population survey. Addiction, 89: 413–420.
63.
WyllieA, ZhangJ‐F and CasswellS. 1994. Comparison of six alcohol consumption measures from survey data. Addiction, 89: 425–430.
