Alcoholism Insight Assessment Scale: validation of the French version of the Hanil Alcohol Insight Scale (HAIS) questionnaire

Résumé 0

The concept of insight refers to the patient’s perception and awareness of their disorder. Its deficit in the context of alcohol addiction refers to the lack of awareness that one has a drinking problem, associated with (1) a high tendency to cancel and minimise any drinking problems and 2) an incapacity to recognise that one is in need of help and a treatment. A better level of insight is a good prognostic factor for maintaining abstinence after intervention; on the other hand, an insight deficit would be a risk factor for relapse. The only tool for assessing insight in alcohol use disorders, the Hanil Alcohol Insight Scale (HAIS), was developed in the Korean language and published in English more than 20 years ago. The objective of the current study was to validate its French version. It involved 65 French-speaking patients followed for alcohol use disorders in a French university hospital centre. The translated questionnaire presented satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.74 and McDonald’s ω = 0.78) as well as good convergent validity. The factor analyses made it possible to group the items into three subdimensions: (1) the minimisation of alcohol problems, (2) the recognition of a loss of control, and (3) awareness of a problem with alcohol and the need for treatment. This French translation of the HAIS therefore has the requisite psychometric properties to help improve the identification of patients at risk and, as well, their clinical management.