Scoring

Seventeen items from the RAB are used in the computation of three scores - a drug-risk score, a sex-risk score, and a total score. These scores are calculated by adding responses to selected items. For individual questions, the response values range from 0 to a maximum of 4. Higher values for items reflect greater frequency of occurrence of the behavior. The eight item drug-risk score has a range of 0 to 22. The range of the sex-risk score, comprised of 9 items, is 0 to 18. This simple scoring system was designed to capture frequency of engaging in each of the reported risk behaviors. Scores for the various items are not differentially weighted. This scoring strategy serves to guard against underestimates of risk resulting from the tendency to under-report participation in behaviors known to be most likely to transmit the HIV virus.


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