Methadone maintenance detoxification fear: A study of its components.

These studies added three hypothesized fear components to the Detoxification Fear Survey Schedule (DFSS-14) and compared its psychometric properties to the original. Two disparate methadone maintenance populations (N = 226) were used in scale development. Thirty-one items and three factors emerged. A validation sample (N = 159) from two diverse methadone maintenance populations yielded a 27-item scale that discriminated between interview-diagnosed detoxification fear and non-fear (91.8% and 85.4% correctly classified). Finally, in methadone maintenance patients from three disparate programs in which the prevalence of detoxification fear was known, the DFSS-27 and DFSS-14 were compared. The DFSS-27 showed substantially improved sensitivity. The DFSS-27 seems a useful screen for detoxification fear in methadone maintenance, may aid intervention planning, and may prove a useful interventions outcome measure.