Methodology and limitations
Addiction Risk Check is the author's own risk‑factor questionnaire. Its content is developed with reference to the World Health Organization's ICD‑11 definitions, the research approaches of AUDIT, ASSIST, PGSI, the Gaming Disorder Test and SCOFF, and the author's professional experience in social work and the addiction field.
The check adds questions about family history, social surroundings, emotional support and motives for use, including self‑medication.
This is an independent author's work. Its questions, scoring and colour thresholds are not a WHO scale and have not undergone independent clinical validation. The result does not diagnose and does not rule out risks.
The app uses the author's questions with reference to scientific sources. The questionnaire and its colour boundaries have not undergone independent validation. The result helps you notice the risk factors and consequences you flagged, but it does not diagnose.
Sources
- WHO, ICD‑11 / CDDR
Definitions and distinctions between the relevant disorders.
- AUDIT — Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (WHO)
Content on alcohol‑related risks and consequences.
- ASSIST — Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (WHO)
Approach to questions on alcohol, drug and other psychoactive substance use, non‑medical use of medications and related problems.
- PGSI — Problem Gambling Severity Index (Gambling Commission, UK)
Content on gambling and its consequences.
- Gaming Disorder Test — Pontes H. M. et al., International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction (2021)
Content on video games (control, priority, continuation despite consequences).
- SCOFF — Morgan J. F. et al., BMJ (1999)
Some signs that call for attention to eating behaviour.
- Khantzian E. J. — The self‑medication hypothesis (1997)
The self‑medication concept as one approach to understanding motives for use.
Not all listed tools were developed by WHO, and none of them covers every area. Their original thresholds and validity evidence do not carry over to this modified author's check. The questions are worded by the author and do not reproduce protected items verbatim. The app is not endorsed by WHO or any other organisation.
Preliminary scoring model
The six core questions and their colour thresholds are the author's preliminary model, not a validated short version of the listed tools (AUDIT, ASSIST, PGSI, Gaming Disorder Test, SCOFF). Those tools served as a content reference; their thresholds are not carried over.
Six questions about current signs (past 12 months) are scored from 0 (“Never”) to 3 (“Very often”). The maximum is 18 points of this author's check.
Thresholds: 0–3 green, 4–7 yellow, 8–12 orange, 13–18 red.
Significant answers (“Very often”) raise the band: one — at least yellow, two — at least orange, three — red. Consequences and continuing despite them, both “Often” — at least orange; both “Very often” — red.
“Don't know” and “Prefer not to answer” are not counted as zero. With fewer than 5 of 6 answered, the result reads “Not enough answers to interpret”.
Family history, support and surroundings are shown separately and do not change the colour. An answer about immediate danger triggers a separate message straight away, regardless of points.
Areas are not compared with each other. All thresholds are preliminary and await the author's approval.
For work, imposed workload (being expected to work in personal time) is shown as a separate message and does not change the colour; a green result always carries a note that green does not mean there are no risks to health and wellbeing.
How topics relate to sources
| Topic | Source or author's addition | Reason for inclusion | Limits of interpretation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pattern and change of use or behaviour | ICD‑11; AUDIT; ASSIST; PGSI; Gaming Disorder Test | Impaired control over amount and duration is a core ICD‑11 feature. | One question does not capture the whole pattern. |
| Motives, including self‑medication | Khantzian (self‑medication); author's addition | Author's experience: relief of distress is a frequent motive. | A motive alone does not prove addiction. |
| Increasing priority | ICD‑11; Gaming Disorder Test | Increasing priority over other activities is an ICD‑11 feature. | Temporary periods of high involvement can occur without harm. |
| Difficulty changing or stopping | ICD‑11; AUDIT; ASSIST; SCOFF (eating: compensation) | Difficulty changing is one sign among several. | For medications, physiological adaptation is not treated as proof of addiction. |
| Consequences for health and daily life | AUDIT; ASSIST; PGSI; Gaming Disorder Test | Consequences matter regardless of a sense of control. | The check does not grade the severity of each consequence. |
| Continuing despite consequences | ICD‑11 | Continuation despite harm is an ICD‑11 feature. | Worded separately for each area; for work only one's own choice to keep the pace counts, not imposed workload. |
| Immediate danger | Author's safety rule | Immediate danger is handled separately from points. | A “No” answer does not rule out an emergency. |
| Family experience and learned example | Author's addition | Author's social‑work experience. | For substances — relatives' difficulties; for behaviours — family example and learned beliefs, with no claims of inheritance. Not a genetic test; does not change the colour. |
| Emotional support | Author's addition | Support is an important resource, not only within the family. | Does not reduce the weight of harm already noted. |
| Surroundings and outside conditions | Author's addition | Availability, advertising, social norms and outside demands (for work — being expected to work in personal time). | Neutral wording without labels; does not change the colour. |