Disorders - Alcohol Use
Cameron, D., Epton, T., Norman, P., Sheeran, P., Harris, P. R., Webb, T. L., Julious, S. A., Brennan, A., Thomas, C., Petroczi, A., Naughton, D., Shah, I.
Background: This paper reports the results of a repeat trial assessing the effectiveness of an online theory-based intervention to promote healthy lifestyle behaviours in new university students. The original trial found that the intervention reduced the number of smokers at 6-month follow-up compared with the control condition, but had non-significant effects on the other targeted health behaviours. However, the original trial suffered from low levels of engagement, which the repeat trial sought to rectify. Methods: Three weeks before staring university, all incoming undergraduate students at a large university in the UK were sent an email inviting them to participate in the study. After completing a baseline questionnaire, participants were randomly allocated to intervention or control conditions. The intervention consisted of a self-affirmation manipulation, health messages based on the theory of planned behaviour and implementation intention tasks. Participants were followed-up 1 and 6 months after starting university. The primary outcome measures were portions of fruit and vegetables consumed, physical activity levels, units of alcohol consumed and smoking status at 6-month follow-up. Results: The study recruited 2,621 students (intervention n = 1346, control n = 1275), of whom 1495 completed at least one follow-up (intervention n = 696, control n = 799). Intention-to-treat analyses indicated that the intervention had a non-significant effect on the primary outcomes, although the effect of the intervention on fruit and vegetable intake was significant in the per-protocol analyses. Secondary analyses revealed that the intervention had significant effects on having smoked at university (self-report) and on a biochemical marker of alcohol use. Conclusions: Despite successfully increasing levels of engagement, the intervention did not have a significant effect on the primary outcome measures. The relatively weak effects of the intervention, found in both the original and repeat trials, may be due to the focus on multiple versus single health behaviours. Future interventions targeting the health behaviour of new university students should therefore focus on single health behaviours. Trial registration: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN07407344.
Trials, 16(1) :
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Universal prevention
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Other Psychological Interventions, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Braitman, A. L.
Computerized interventions are widely used because of their logistic advantages over in-person interventions. They are more cost-effective and can quickly deliver tailored individual feedback to large groups of students. However, in-person interventions are generally more efficacious than interventions delivered via other mediums. The current study explored the ability of emailed boosters to improve the efficacy of a popular online intervention using personalized feedback delivered remotely. Data were collected from N = 213 college student volunteers ages 18 to 24, mostly female (66%), and mostly Caucasian/White (62%) or African-American/Black (22%). Participants were randomized into one of two conditions: (i) intervention only, or (ii) intervention plus booster. All participants engaged in 60 min with the online intervention (self-guided, but monitored in the lab), and were assessed on alcohol consumption and related problems at baseline (pre-intervention), 2 weeks post, and 4 weeks post. Emailed boosters sent after the two-week assessment contained personalized feedback regarding tailored norms (compared to same gender students at the same institution), and protective behavioral strategies (PBS; reminding participants which strategies they reported using, and listing other strategies available to them). Piecewise latent growth models revealed booster emails with personalized feedback yielded significant reductions in drinking, b = -4.98 drinks (b = -0.502, 95% CI [-9.361, -0.624]). Further exploration revealed PBS as amoderator. There was an observed booster effect for students low in PBS at baseline, but not students already highly engaged in PBS use. Pairing norms (motivating information) with PBS (means of harmreduction) appears to facilitate drinking reductions only for students not already engaged in harm reduction behavior. At baseline, these students consume significantly more drinks, drink more often, get drunk more often, and report more problems than students already highly engaged in PBS, making them ideal targets for harm reduction efforts. The observed efficacy of the personalized booster delivered via email has positive clinical implications. Its easy dissemination and low cost make it a very efficient way to potentially reduce alcohol consumption among the student body while maintaining the advantages of online interventions.
Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, 39 : 269A
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Universal prevention
, At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Personalised feedback, normative feedback
, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Black, N., Mullan, B.
Objective: To develop and test a planning-ability, executive function (EF) intervention to reduce heavy episodic drinking (HED).; Participants: Fifty-five heavy-drinking, first-year college students, recruited from May to October 2012.; Methods: Participants were randomly allocated to an experimental or active control group and then completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption and demographic questions. Over 1 week, the experimental group completed 4 progressively harder planning tasks, whereas the control group completed 4 easier, consistent-difficulty planning tasks. Participants then recorded their daily alcohol consumption for 2 weeks.; Results: As hypothesized, both mean and maximum per-occasion alcohol consumption was significantly reduced in the experimental group compared with the control group. There were no significant differences in frequency of HED.; Conclusions: These results provide initial support for the use of a planning-ability intervention in decreasing per-occasion alcohol consumption. Future researchers can examine the mechanism of effect, the long-term efficacy, and the specific EFs involved in other aspects of alcohol consumption.;
Journal Of American College Health: J Of ACH, 63(4) : 280-284
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Other Psychological Interventions, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Bendtsen, P., Bendtsen, M., Karlsson, N., White, I. R., McCambridge, J.
Background: Previous research on the effectiveness of online alcohol interventions for college students has shown mixed results. Small benefits have been found in some studies and because online interventions are inexpensive and possible to implement on a large scale, there is a need for further study.; Objective: This study evaluated the effectiveness of national provision of a brief online alcohol intervention for students in Sweden.; Methods: Risky drinkers at 9 colleges and universities in Sweden were invited by mail and identified using a single screening question. These students (N=1605) gave consent and were randomized into a 2-arm parallel group randomized controlled trial consisting of immediate or delayed access to a fully automated online assessment and intervention with personalized feedback.; Results: After 2 months, there was no strong evidence of effectiveness with no statistically significant differences in the planned analyses, although there were some indication of possible benefit in sensitivity analyses suggesting an intervention effect of a 10% reduction (95% CI -30% to 10%) in total weekly alcohol consumption. Also, differences in effect sizes between universities were seen with participants from a major university (n=365) reducing their weekly alcohol consumption by 14% (95% CI -23% to -4%). However, lower recruitment than planned and differential attrition in the intervention and control group (49% vs 68%) complicated interpretation of the outcome data.; Conclusions: Any effects of current national provision are likely to be small and further research and development work is needed to enhance effectiveness.; Trial Registration: International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 02335307; http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN02335307 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6ZdPUh0R4).;
Journal of Medical Internet Research, 17(7) : e170-e170
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Personalised feedback, normative feedback
, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Bernstein, M. H., Wood, M. D.
Although message framing has been widely applied to health behaviors (Gallagher & Updegraff, 2012), only one study has compared gain- and loss- framed messages for alcohol use. Gerend and Cullen (2008) randomly assigned college students to receive messages on heavy drinking consequences that varied by framing (gain v. loss) and temporal context (short v. long term). At a 1-month follow-up, there was a main effect of message framing, such that participants in the gain frame condition reported fewer drinks per occasion and less frequent drinking and heavy episodic drinking. For drinks per occasion and heavy episodic drinking, there was also a Frame X Temporal Context interaction, with participants in the gain frame/short term condition reporting lower levels. In a heavy drinking population, we sought to extend these findings by delivering the intervention via email, and examining theoretically derived moderators and mediators. College students (N = 220) scoring >8 (for men) or >6 (for women) on the AUDIT were randomly assigned to one of four conditions in a 2 (Frame: Gain v. Loss)9 2 (Temporal Context: Long-Term v. Short Term consequences) factorial design. Participants received four weekly emails on heavy drinking consequences phrased in a manner consistent with their condition. After each message, participants were asked to complete a manipulation check, and we observed response rates of: 99.5, 96.8, 93.2, and 93.6%. Participants were sent a follow-up survey 1 month after the final message, with a response rate of 96.4%. Manipulation checks revealed strong effects for the message framing and temporal context manipulation, ps < 0.001, ds = 1.67 and 0.76, respectively. However, a 2 9 2 ANCOVA, controlling for baseline alcohol involvement, revealed no consistent main effects or interactions on weekly drinks, heavy episodic drinking, or alcohol-related problems, ps > 0.05. Using regression analyses, we observed a main effect of Need for Cognition (NFC), such that NFC scores were positively related to heavy drinking, p < 0.05. We did not observe that NFC, Consideration of Future Consequences, or self-efficacy moderated the effect of message frame or temporal context on alcohol use or heavy drinking. Using the PROCESS macro (Hayes, 2013), treatment effects were not mediated by message elaboration, message liking, or message derogation. These results do not replicate prior laboratory based findings and are considered in light of message delivery and targeted sample.
Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, 39 : 206A
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Other Psychological Interventions, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Bernstein, M. H., Wood, M. D., Erickson, L. R.
Aims: Only one study has examined message framing on college drinking, but did so in a laboratory setting among a general sample of college students. The current study was designed to: (a) compare the efficacy of emailed interventions differing by message framing and temporal context on alcohol involvement among heavy drinking college students and (b) examine need for cognition (NFC), consideration of future consequences (CFC) and self-efficacy as putative moderators. Methods: Hazardous drinking college students (N = 220) were randomly assigned to conditions in a 2 (Frame: gain vs. loss) × 2 (Temporal Context: long-term vs. short-term consequences) factorial design. Participants received four emails on heavy drinking consequences phrased in a manner consistent with their condition. After each message, participants were given a manipulation check. Participants were sent a 1-month follow-up assessment. Primary outcome measures were heavy episodic drinking (HED) and alcohol-related problems. We hypothesized two main effects (less alcohol consumption in the gain-frame and short-term condition), qualified by a Frame × Temporal Context interaction with substantially less alcohol involvement in the gain-frame/short-term condition. Results: There was very little study attrition (96.4% completed follow-up survey, 93.2-99.5% completed manipulation checks), and strong effects were observed for the manipulations. A 2 × 2 ANCOVA, controlling for baseline alcohol involvement, revealed no consistent main effects or interactions on either outcome. No moderation was observed for any putative moderator. Conclusions: These results do not replicate prior laboratory-based research. The null findings may be attributed to the heavy drinking sample or electronic means of message delivery.
Alcohol & Alcoholism, 51(1) : 106-116
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Other Psychological Interventions, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Bertholet, N., Cunningham, J. A., Faouzi, M., Gaume, J., Gmel, G., Burnand, B., Daeppen, J.-B.
Introduction: Alcohol use is one of the leading modifiable morbidity and mortality risk factors among young adults.; Study Design: 2 parallel-group randomized controlled trial with follow-up at 1 and 6 months.; Setting/participants: Internet based study in a general population sample of young men with low-risk drinking, recruited between June 2012 and February 2013. Intervention: Internet-based brief alcohol primary prevention intervention (IBI). The IBI aims at preventing an increase in alcohol use: it consists of normative feedback, feedback on consequences, calorific value alcohol, computed blood alcohol concentration, indication that the reported alcohol use is associated with no or limited risks for health. Intervention group participants received the IBI. Control group (CG) participants completed only an assessment.; Main Outcome Measures: Alcohol use (number of drinks per week), binge drinking prevalence. Analyses were conducted in 2014-2015.; Results: Of 4365 men invited to participate, 1633 did so; 896 reported low-risk drinking and were randomized (IBI: n = 451; CG: n = 445). At baseline, 1 and 6 months, the mean (SD) number of drinks/week was 2.4(2.2), 2.3(2.6), 2.5(3.0) for IBI, and 2.4(2.3), 2.8(3.7), 2.7(3.9) for CG. Binge drinking, absent at baseline, was reported by 14.4% (IBI) and 19.0% (CG) at 1 month and by 13.3% (IBI) and 13.0% (CG) at 6 months. At 1 month, beneficial intervention effects were observed on the number of drinks/week (p = 0.05). No significant differences were observed at 6 months.; Conclusion: We found protective short term effects of a primary prevention IBI.; Trial Registration: Controlled-Trials.com ISRCTN55991918.;
PLoS ONE, 10(12) : e0144146-e0144146
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Universal prevention
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Psychoeducation, Personalised feedback, normative feedback
, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Bertholet, N., Cunningham, J. A., Faouzi, M., Gaume, J., Gmel, G., Burnand, B., Daeppen, J.-B.
Addiction, 110(11) : 1735-1743
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Psychoeducation, Personalised feedback, normative feedback
, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Arnaud, N., Baldus, C., Elgan, TH., Tonnesen, H., De-Paepe, N., Csemy, L., Thomasius, R.
Aims: In this article we explore the moderators of effectiveness of WISEteens (Web-based brief Intervention for SubstancE using teens), a fully automated web-based brief motivational intervention targeting risky substance use among adolescents. Based on previous studies, we examined the differential effects on drinking of sex, readiness to change, self-efficacy, alcohol risk status, and parental monitoring as hypothesized moderators. Methods: We analyzed completers data from a two-armed RCT study with follow-up assessment after 3 months, including N = 211 self-enrolled adolescents (16 -18 years) who screened positive for at-risk substance use in Sweden, Belgium, the Czech Republic, and Germany. The trial compared a single-session brief motivational intervention to an assessment-only control group with AUDIT-C scores for drinking frequency, quantity, and frequency of binge drinking in the past month as study outcome. Results: The analyses revealed a statistically significant moderation effect for sex on drinking in the previous month, with a stronger effect for males. In contrast, readiness to change, self-efficacy, alcohol risk status, and parental monitoring did not moderate the effects. Conclusions: Although the trial was limited by large dropout, our findings imply that web-based interventions can be particularly effective for male adolescents, although the effects of WISEteens were largely independent of other individual characteristics. Web-based brief intervention should integrate gender-specific components to raise effectiveness for females. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) (journal abstract).
Sucht: Zeitschrift fur Wissenschaft und Praxis, 61(6) : 377-387
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Motivational interviewing, includes Motivational Enhancing Therapy, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Canale, N., Vieno, A., Santinello, M., Chieco, F., Andriolo, S.
Background: Although motivational processes may influence the intervention effects and help prevention programmes identify students at great risk for alcohol-related problems, no computerized alcohol intervention has yet to be tailored to drinking motives. Objective: To describe the development and initial pilot testing of a computer-delivered intervention tailored to drinking motives, to prevent alcohol abuse and its adverse consequences among university students in general and among baseline hazardous drinkers specifically. Methods: 124 college students attending a public university in northeastern Italy participated in this study in October of 2012 (89.2% female- mean age=21.64-34% baseline hazardous drinkers). Two classes (one undergraduate, one graduate) were assigned to one of two conditions: intervention and control group. Both groups received profile-specific feedback and then the intervention group received profile-specific online training for 4 weeks. This profile was based on their risk type (high-low) and drinking motives (enhancement-social-conformity-coping). Results: Controlling for corresponding baseline alcohol measures, analyses showed a significant interaction between intervention condition and hazardous drinkers at baseline. For hazardous drinkers at baseline, the alcohol intervention results showed a significant decrease in frequency and quantity of alcohol use at follow-up, while no difference was observed between intervention conditions for non-hazardous drinkers at baseline. Conclusions: The results suggest that hazardous drinkers (college students) who completed the specific training and received personalized feedback seemed to do better on frequency and quantity of alcohol use than hazardous drinkers (college students) who received only personalized feedback. These results seem to provide support for a larger trial of the intervention and for more appropriate evaluations.
American Journal of Drug & Alcohol Abuse, 41(2) : 183-187
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Controlled clinical trials
-
Stage: Universal prevention
, At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions (any)
, Personalised feedback, normative feedback
, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Dawyniak, S., Lange, T., Adam, S.
Introduction: Alcohol consumption and its health effects are a common cause of death in Germany and Europe. Mostly children and adolescents underestimate this fact. The earlier alcohol consumption in life starts, the more likely a person is to develop a risky drinking behavior. Therefore children and adolescents are an important target group of alcohol prevention programs. Objectives: The aim of this review is to investigate the effects of school-based prevention programs on alcohol consumption of children and adolescents (6-18 years) in Europe. Method / Design: The review follows the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) statement guidelines. The database "Pubmed" was used for the research of studies combining the search terms 'alcohol abuse', 'alcohol consumption', 'alcohol' , 'prevention', 'school-based' and 'adolescents'. Results: The electronic search revealed 336 citations. Finally, a total of nine studies (mean age 13 years) are divided in groups regarding to the type of intervention: teaching-based interventions, group-based interventions and combined interventions. The prevention programs that refer to lifetime- and 30-month prevalence of binge drinking achieve the greatest success, however the first contact with alcohol, cannot be avoided or delayed. Three of the nine studies examined the alcohol prevention for young people, who have got a high risk of alcohol abuse. In this group the highest program effects are reached by using group meetings. Conclusions: A combined alcohol prevention program for adolescents is recommended. This is divided into two group sessions per 90 minutes and eight school lessons, accompanied by out of school parental education.
Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, 1) : 381-382
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use
- Type: Systematic reviews
-
Stage: Universal prevention
, At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions (any)
, Other Psychological Interventions
Yurasek, A. M., Dennhardt, A. A., Murphy, J. G.
Objective - A recent study demonstrated that a single 50-minute supplemental session that targeted the behavioral economic mechanisms of substance-free reinforcement and delayed reward discounting (Substance Free Activity Session: SFAS) enhanced the efficacy of a standard alcohol brief motivational intervention (BMI) for college drinkers. The purpose of the current study was to conduct a randomized controlled trial intended to replicate and extend the aforementioned study by focusing on both drug and alcohol misuse and reducing session length in order to enhance dissemination potential.
Method - Participants were 97 college students (58.8% women; 59.8% white/Caucasian & 30.9% African American; M age = 20.01, SD = 2.23) who reported at least one heavy drinking episode in the past month (M = 4.01 episodes). Most participants (62%) reported recent marijuana use (M = 12.22 days of past-month use). After completing a baseline assessment and an individual 30-minute alcohol-focused BMI, participants were randomized to either the 30-minute SFAS session or an education control session.
Results - A series of mixed model intent-to-treat analyses revealed that both groups reported drinking reductions and that participants in the BMI+SFAS group reported fewer days using marijuana at the 6-month follow-up.
Conclusions - These results do not support the incremental efficacy of the briefer SFAS for reducing drinking but suggest that it may improve marijuana outcomes. Future research is needed to identify the ideal length and timing of the SFAS supplement to BMIs.
Exp Clin Psychopharmacol., 23(5) : 332-338
- Year: 2015
- Problem: Alcohol Use, Cannabis Use
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions (any)
, Motivational interviewing, includes Motivational Enhancing Therapy, Psychoeducation, Personalised feedback, normative feedback