Temptation, restriction, and the regulation of alcohol intake: Validity and utility of the temptation and restraint inventory

Objective: The Temptation and RestraintInventory (TRI) is a measure of drinking restraint, the preoccupation with controlling alcohol intake. It contains two higher order factors pertaining to the temptation to drink and the restriction of alcohol intake. We tested the convergent and discriminant validity of the TRI in comparison to the Preoccupation with Alcohol Scale (PAS), the Reasons for Limiting Drinking Scale (RLD) and the Drinking-Related Locus of Control Scale (DRIE), each of which measures constructs analogous to the components of the TRI. We also tested the utility of the TRI, as compared to these related measures, for predicting typical drinking and alcohol problems. Method: A sample of 296 (50% male) moderate to heavy drinking adults completed the TRI, the PAS, the RLD, the DRIE and measures of typical (weekly) drinking and alcohol problems (SMAST). Results: Correlations indicated that the TRI had excellent convergent and discriminant validity. The TRI's temptation factor (Cognitive and Emotional Preoccupation) was strongly and positively correlated with the PAS and the DRIE, and was weakly and positively correlated with the RLD. The TRI's restriction factor (Cognitive and Behavioral Control) was positively and moderately correlated with the DRIE and moderately to weakly correlated with the PAS and the RLD. In regressions predicting weekly drinking and SMAST scores, the TRI was particularly effective in accounting for the variance in SMAST scores. Conclusions: In comparison to measures of conceptually related constructs, the components of the TRI showed excellent convergent and discriminant validity. The TRI accounted for large portions of the variance in alcohol-related outcomes, using fewer items than measures of similar constructs.