The Brief Background Assessment (BBA), an intake instrument, was administered to the participants as both a structured interview and as a self-administered assessment. Participants who entered on even-numbered days first self-administered the form in a small group setting within 3 days of arrival and next completed the form in an interview 7 days later. Those entering on odd-numbered days were first interviewed and then self-administered the form 7 days later. Results revealed high agreement between the two methods of administration across all areas assessed by the BBA. Similarly, responses that did not agree were distributed randomly across the type of administration. Findings suggest that information collected by a self-administered intake assessment such as the BBA provides information similar to that gathered by interview-base intake assessments. Tables and 22 references (Author abstract modified)