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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2020 Dec 1.
Published in final edited form as: Curr Opin Psychol. 2019 Jan 28;30:35–41. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.01.009

Table 2.

Methods for Measuring Substance Use in Real-World Settings

Remote Measure Substance Passive Direct Objective Outcome
Self-report (Ecological Momentary Assessment/Interactive Voice Recording)21,37 Any No Yes No Quantity,
Frequency,
Abstinence
Breath samples23,27–29,46 Alcohol,
Nicotine		 No Yes Yes Abstinence
Transdermal sensor23,47 Alcohol Yes Yes Yes Frequency,
Abstinence
Wearable patch/tattoo48,49 Cocaine,
Opiates,
Alcohol		 Yes Yes Yes Abstinence
Hand/arm movement50 Cigarette
Smoking		 Yes No Yes Quantity,
Frequency,
Abstinence
Gait analysis51 Alcohol Yes No Yes High-risk
quantities
Psychophysiology52–54 Cocaine,
Opiates		 Yes No Yes Abstinence
Portable puff topography devices55 Cigarette
Smoking		 No Yes Yes Quantity,
Frequency
Electronic, smart lighter56 Cigarette
Smoking		 Moderate No Yes Quantity,
Frequency
Smart e-cigarette or vaporizer57,58 Nicotine,
Other
Constituents
used in
vaporizers		 Moderate Yes Yes Quantity,
Frequency,
Abstinence
Mobile phone usage data (via supervised machine learning)59 Alcohol Yes No Yes High-risk
quantities

Note. Passive measures do not require any input or activity from the individual beyond initial set-up of a device. Measures are considered moderately passive if they require user-input and adherence, but without any additional time burden. Direct measures assess substance use directly, while indirect measures assess a behavior or process related to substance use. Objective measures are not subject to reporting biases.