The questionnaire of the Epidemiological Survey on Substance Abuse among Adults in Germany: A flexible tool.

The cross-sectional survey does not repetitively apply the same questionnaire. Current research topics are addressed through varying emphases. The objective of the 2000 survey, for example, was gaining data on abuse and addiction employing the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. In the 2003 survey consequences of cannabis and cocaine consumption were the main focus. In the 2006 survey the DSM-IV criteria for tobacco, alcohol and cannabis were again employed.

The questionnaire has been repeatedly revised, e.g.:

• The list of illegal substances was modified according to the respective legal situation and the importance of various psychoactive substances
• Incomprehensible terms were replaced by more common ones
• Validated instruments were implemented
• Questions which had often been answered inconsistently or not at all have been modified.