Psychometric Properties of the 30 Item Wisconsin Inventory of Smoking Dependence Motives (WISDM-30) among African American Light Smokers

Abstract

Despite smoking fewer cigarettes per day, African American smokers have greater difficulty quitting when compared to other ethnic groups. Identifying factors associated with smoking among these high-risk smokers may assist in developing effective smoking cessation interventions. This study examined the psychometric properties of the WISDM-30 (Smith et al., 2007) among a sample of 515 African American light smokers. Unlike the WISDM-30 which has a 10 factor solution, results from both an EFA and CFA analysis suggest a 27-item version of the WISDM with 8 subscales was the best solution to evaluate nicotine dependence in this sample. The 8-factor model replicated seven of the factors originally reported by Smith and colleagues (2007) for the WISDM-30 (e.g., Affiliative Attachment, Automaticity, Cognitive Enhancement, Negative Reinforcement, Social Support, Taste/Associative Processes, and Weight Loss). The final factor consisted of the original three craving items plus two items from the Tolerance/Loss of Control subscale as well as one item from the Cue Reactivity subscale. In addition, all 8 subscales were found to load on a single higher order factor, indicating each of these areas measures a unified construct. Internal reliability was improved by combining these items, further providing support to the results obtained in the EFA and CFA analyses showing a combined subscale. The Automaticity and Craving subscales of the WISDM-27 were associated with smoking level, while subscale scores did not differ by gender. Results from this study provide an initial validation of the WISDM-30 among African American light-smokers and highlight specific factors related to nicotine dependence in this population.