Individual Differences in Smoking Exposure and Nicotine Dependence Sensitivity

描述(申请人提供)：这项竞争性修订旨在扩大家长资助，通过使用一种创新的方法(综合数据分析：IDA)来汇集家长资助中使用的两个研究数据集，并使用一种新的统计方法(缓和非线性因素分析：MNLFA)来评估三种常用的尼古丁依赖衡量标准：DSM-IV、尼古丁依赖症状量表(NDSS)和修改的Fagerstrom耐受性问卷(FTQ)，以提供对尼古丁依赖(ND)症状的深入和严格的心理测量评估。在过去，由于样本大小、异质性和ND的基本比率的增加，结合物质使用数据集来获得对假设的更强大的测试一直是令人望而却步的，主要是因为不同研究在测量结构的方式上存在差异。然而，尽管研究人群、设计和测量方法不同，IDA仍是一种汇集数据集的方法。与单独研究单个研究数据集相比，IDA允许进行更强大、更全面、更严格的研究。此外，开发了新的统计方法(MNLFA)，允许在研究和测量之间测试新城疫症状属性的相似性(不变性)(根据症状如何与潜在的新城疫结构相关及其在结构的不同水平上被认可的可能性)，以及允许同时评估作为单个风险因素的函数的不变性。这项拟议的研究在几个方面扩展了家长研究。首先，它提出了两个新的目标：1)对ND症状进行严格的心理测量分析，以测试在汇集的数据集上的研究的不变性；2)测试这些症状作为抑郁症和酒精使用障碍的函数的不变性。这一心理测量学评估将揭示ND测量和这些个体风险因素的差异如何影响ND结构的含义和随后的得分。最后，第三个目标是使用每个人的综合ND症状评分，根据前两个目标中测试的模型，交叉验证父母赠款关于吸烟暴露和尼古丁敏感性之间的关系的特定目标。其目的是通过使用这种新的ND分数来对父母研究假设进行更强大的测试，该分数在不同研究中具有共同的衡量标准，尽管测量和其他研究特征存在差异，并考虑到作为抑郁和酒精使用障碍功能的症状的心理测量学特性的潜在差异。这项应用通过应用新的和创新的方法和统计方法，通过识别尽管研究设计和测量方法不同但在研究中保持不变的新城疫症状，来推进和优化新城疫的测量，从而极大地促进OppNet的目标。结果可以为ND的测量提供信息，以及不同ND测量的症状可以组合在一起以开发最佳ND测量的程度。 公共卫生相关性：这项研究将提供对年轻吸烟者尼古丁依赖症状测量的更多了解。预计拟议的研究将为进一步制定一项简短但高度准确的评估提供信息，以确定哪些年轻吸烟者最有可能继续吸烟和吸烟加剧，并为这些年轻吸烟者提供有针对性的干预措施。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This competitive revision seeks to expand on the parent grant to provide an in-depth and rigorous psychometric evaluation of nicotine dependence (ND) symptoms by using an innovative method (Integrative Data Analysis: IDA) to pool the two study data sets used in the parent grant and, using the pooled data, apply a novel statistical method (Moderated Nonlinear Factor Analysis: MNLFA) to evaluate the psychometric properties of ND symptoms from three commonly used measures of nicotine dependence: the DSM-IV, the Nicotine Dependence Syndrome Scale (NDSS), and the modified Fagerstrom Tolerance Questionnaire (FTQ). In the past, combining substance use data sets to obtain more powerful tests of hypotheses due to increases in sample size, heterogeneity, and base rates of ND, has been prohibitive primarily because of differences across studies in the ways in which constructs are measured. However, IDA is a method for pooling data sets despite differences in study populations, design, and measures. IDA permits considerably more powerful, more comprehensive, and more rigorous studies than can be achieved by studying single study data sets independently. Furthermore, new statistical methods (MNLFA) have been developed that permit tests of similarity (invariance) in ND symptom properties (in terms of how the symptoms relate to the underlying ND construct and their likelihood of endorsement at different levels of the construct) across studies and measures, as well as permitting a simultaneous evaluation of invariance as a function of individual risk factors. The proposed research extends the parent study in several ways. First, it proposes two new aims: 1) to conduct a rigorous psychometric analysis of ND symptoms to test invariance across studies on the pooled data set and 2) to test invariance of these symptoms as a function of depression and alcohol use disorders. This psychometric evaluation will inform how differences in measures of ND and these individual risk factors influence the meaning and subsequent scoring of an ND construct. Finally, a third aim is to use a combined ND symptom score for each individual, resulting from the models tested in the first two aims, to cross validate the specific aims of the parent grant regarding the relation between smoking exposure and nicotine sensitivity. The purpose is to conduct a more powerful test of the parent study hypotheses by using this new ND score that has a common metric across studies despite differences in measurement and other study characteristics and that takes into account potential differences in the psychometric properties of the symptoms as a function of depression and alcohol use disorders. This application has significant potential to advance the goals of OppNet through application of new and innovative methodological and statistical methods to advance and optimize the measurement of ND by identifying ND symptoms that are invariant across studies despite differences in study design and measures. Results can inform the measurement of ND and the extent to which symptoms from different ND measures can be combined to develop an optimal measure of ND. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This research will provide a greater understanding of the measurement of nicotine dependence symptoms in young smokers. The proposed research is expected to inform further development of a brief but highly accurate assessment to identify young smokers who are at greatest risk for continued and heavier smoking and to inform targeted interventions for these young smokers.