ABSTRACT
Social workers and other helping professionals often have difficulty addressing client alcohol and other drug (AOD) use. The purpose of this study was to develop a measure of potential barriers social workers might experience in discussing AOD use with clients. A pool of 29 items was generated, pilot tested, and given to social work students, and to home visitors (n = 219). Exploratory factor analysis using a rotated component matrix found 14 items clustering in three factors: attitudes, worker/client relationship skills, and knowledge. All factors had acceptable internal consistency. Confirmatory factor analysis on a larger sample is needed for further validation.