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Drug misuse and dependence in Brazil, especially cocaine and crack, have been the focus of increasing attention due to the increased severity of its consequences. According to Ribeiro, Dualibi, Perrennoud, and Sola (2012), the prognosis is worse for those taking crack and cocaine together than for those who use either drug alone. According to a study conducted by Fundação Oswaldo Cruz [Fiocruz] (2013) on the profile of users of crack and similar drugs with a sample of 7,381 users, these individuals identified approximately 370,000 people that regularly use crack or similar forms of smoked cocaine in Brazil. This situation requires the development and improvement of efficient ways of prevention and intervention suitable to this reality. Actions to assess the constructs of the process of behavior change must be adapted to the Brazilian population's patterns of cocaine and crack use.
The Transtheoretical Model - MTT (Prochaska & DiClemente, 1982) is an integrative and biopsychosocial framework for the process of intentional behavior change. Self-efficacy, an important cognitive aspect in the production of self-perception and an instrument in the self-regulation process and control of the environment itself (Bandura, Azzi, & Polydoro, 2008), has become an important element to study factors related to drug addiction (Freire & Oliveira, 2011). Both the MTT and Relapse Prevention (Marlatt & Gordon, 1985) systematize the construct of self-efficacy in the understanding of addictions. In a literature review on self-efficacy related to drug use, Kadden and Litt (2011) reported that several studies demonstrated that self-efficacy is a predictor of outcomes, but there is still little consistency in the recommendation for interventions.
After the establishment of the MTT, temptation was understood as an urge to return to a previous behavior. According to studies conducted by Prochaska and DiClemente (1982), three factors are usually associated with the most common types of tempting situations: negative affect or distress, positive social situations, and craving. Temptation and self-efficacy are both important markers to assess the individual's commitment to the process of changing addictive behaviors (DiClemente, 2003). Thus, temptation to use illicit drugs is understood as a determining factor in relapse (Connors, DiClemente, Velasquez, & Donovan, 2013).
DiClemente, Carbonari, Montgomery, and Hughes (1994) demonstrated the properties of the Alcohol Abstinence Self-efficacy Scale (AASE) with 266 alcoholics treated on an outpatient...