Dependence to alcohol
and/or drugs was measured using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric
Interview (MINI) (Sheehan et al., 1997). The MINI is a
widely-used, brief, structured diagnostic interview developed by psychiatrists
in the United States and Europe for assessing DSM-IV psychiatric
disorders (Lecrubier et al., 1997; Sheehan et al., 1997). The MINI
queries a series of dichotomous (no/yes) questions to screen for alcohol
(8 items) and drug (10 items) dependence symptoms. Drug/alcohol dependence/
abuse was based on the drug most frequency used through
individual self-identification and coded as 0 (no dependence/abuse),
1 (either alcohol or drug dependence/abuse) or 2 (both alcohol and
drug dependence/abuse). Cronbach's alpha was moderately high
(alpha=.79). Also, measured was the individual's personal experience
with “ever overdosed on drugs,” coded as 1 (yes) or 0 (no).