AbstractThe clinical applicability of the Perceived‐Benefit of Drinking and Drug Use Scales was evaluated as an approach to screening for adolescent substance abuse on 260 consecutive admissions to an adolescent inpatient psychiatric unit. Evidence of convergent and divergent validity is presented. The scales' strong relationships with self‐reported substance abuse indicators and clinical judgments support their use as proxy measures for assessing the substance involvement of adolescent psychiatric patients. Results indicate that the instrument is practical and easy‐to‐administer as part of clinical intake procedures.