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Alcohol DrinkingBESAFENCT03335735

Smartphone-paired Breathalyzers and Loss- and Gain-framed Texts for Reducing Drinking and Driving

A study testing Loss-framed text message and Gain-Framed text message in people with Alcohol Drinking and Alcohol Intoxication, run by University of Pennsylvania at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

This project aims to demonstrate the feasibility of a scalable behavioral intervention using smartphone-paired breathalyzers and text message aimed at reducing drinking and driving among individuals who report heavy drinking. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 21 to 39 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
What is being tested?
Loss-framed text message and Gain-Framed text message
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
58 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
21 Dec 2017to 30 Jun 2018
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 21 to 39 years
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult

Who may be able to join

  • Between the ages of 21-39
  • Reports an average of one heavy drinking day (men more than five drinks, women more than four drinks) per week over the preceding 8 weeks
  • Has a valid photo identification (ID)
  • Are willing and able to use an Uber or Lyft or septa as transportation home
  • Drives four or more trips per week
  • Owns an Apple iPhone or Android smartphone

Who cannot join

  • Desire for alcohol treatment now or have received alcohol treatment within the past 6 months
  • Alcohol use disorder rated as severe per DSM-V criteria
  • Non-English-speaking
  • Women who are pregnant
  • Individuals who should not consume alcohol due to a medical condition such as liver disease, cancer, and seizure disorders. Participants will be asked to answer yes if they have any disorder that their doctor has suggested that they should not drink alcohol. If they are unsure or say I don't know the investigators will ask them to speak with their doctor prior to participation.

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • University of Pennsylvania

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Pilot Trial Leveraging Smartphone-paired Breathalyzers and Loss- and Gain-framed Text Notifications for Reducing Drinking Driving

This project aims to demonstrate the feasibility of a scalable behavioral intervention using smartphone-paired breathalyzers and text message aimed at reducing drinking and driving among individuals who report heavy drinking. All participants receive a smartphone breathalyzer to provide feedback on their estimated blood alcohol level. The intervention compares loss- and gain-framed messages that make the consequences of drinking and driving more salient to standard messages not to drink and drive.

Read the detailed description

The overall objective of this project is to leverage smartphone-paired breathalyzers to implement cost-effective and scalable behavioral interventions to reduce risky drinking behaviors such as drinking and driving. Prospect theory proposes that messages framed in different ways can elicit different responses from individuals. Loss aversion refers to people's tendency to prefer avoiding losses to acquiring equivalent gains: it's better to not lose $5 than to find $5. People are more motivated to avoid losing something than they are to win something. Studies have found that delivering messaging framed as a loss are also effective in motivating certain behaviors. On the other hand, gain-framed messages have been shown to have a positive effect on preventative healthcare. By using automated remote monitoring, innovative loss aversion and gain-framed messaging strategies incorporating insights from behavioral economics could be more easily implemented by delivering effective messaging prior to a risky behavior taking place. The investigators hope that the use of loss aversive and/or gain-framed messaging will lead to individuals improving planning behavior around drinking, especially in regards to drinking and driving. The objective of this project is to demonstrate the feasibility of a scalable intervention using loss- gain-framed messaging to reduce drinking and driving, compare the effectiveness of each type of messaging, and to increase the use of Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) monitors as a way to plan safer strategies when drinking. The investigators' long-term objective is to secure federal funding for research that leverages insights from behavioral economics supported by smartphone technology to reduce risky drinking.

Being tested
Loss-framed text message, Gain-Framed text message
Keywords
alcohol, driving, breathalyzers, smartphone
Medical subject headings
Alcohol Drinking, Alcoholic Intoxication, Driving Under the Influence, Drinking Behavior

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Loss-framed text messageBehavioural

    Participants in the intervention group will receive loss-framed text messages related to drinking and driving on days during the week with a higher likelihood of alcohol consumption (Thursday-Saturday). Loss aversion refers to people's tendency to prefer avoiding losses to acquiring equivalent gains: it's better to not lose $5 than to find $5, so the content of the messages will be related to loss of personal freedom, loss of money, and loss of future employment opportunities due to Driving Under the Influence (DUI) convictions.

  • Gain-Framed text messageBehavioural

    Participants in the intervention group will receive gain-framed text messages related to drinking and driving on days during the week with a higher likelihood of alcohol consumption (Thursday-Saturday). Gain-framed messages have been shown to have a positive effect on preventative healthcare and include content framed in a manner that the participant gains something from taking preventative action. Message content will be related to saving lives, gaining control, and making loved ones happy.

Study groups in NCT03335735
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Loss-Framed Text MessagesExperimentalLoss-framed text message
Receives: Behavioral: Loss-framed text message
ControlNo interventionParticipants in this arm will not receive any intervention.
Gain-Framed Messaging GroupExperimentalGain-framed text message
Receives: Behavioral: Gain-Framed text message

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. The primary outcome measure will be the change in proportion of breathalyzer measurements submitted with self-reported drinking episodes across groups.

    Measured: baseline up to 8 weeks

Secondary outcomes (3)
  1. Change in frequency of BACtrack monitoring within intervention group from baseline

    Measured: baseline up to 8 weeks

  2. Drinking and driving episodes in which their BAC via self-report or BAC measure is expected to be positive

    To be assessed using a driving monitoring app passively running on participants' phones throughout the trial

    Measured: baseline up to 8 weeks

  3. Changes in accuracy of BAC guess vs actual BAC measure with continued use (Does a participant become more accurate overtime in predicting what their BAC will be prior to measuring)

    Participants are able to guess their BAC within the app before collecting the measurement. We will examine the changes in the accuracy of their guesses over time

    Measured: baseline up to 8 weeks

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted8 Nov 2017
  2. Study start21 Dec 2017
  3. Primary completion9 Apr 2018
  4. Study completion30 Jun 2018

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Prevention
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Single blind
Who is masked
Participant
Enrolment
58 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT03335735
Sponsor's protocol ID
827345
Acronym
BESAFE
Status last verified
Aug 2018
First submitted
5 Oct 2017
Last updated
8 Aug 2018
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No: There is no plan to make individual participant data (IPD) available to other researchers. In fact, there will be an NIH Certificate of Confidentiality protecting participants' data.

Publications

  • White A, Hingson R. The burden of alcohol use: excessive alcohol consumption and related consequences among college students. Alcohol Res. 2013;35(2):201-18. doi: 10.35946/arcr.v35.2.11.

    PubMed 24881329
  • Sloan FA, Eldred LM, Xu Y. The behavioral economics of drunk driving. J Health Econ. 2014 May;35:64-81. doi: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2014.01.005. Epub 2014 Feb 11.

    PubMed 24603444
  • Naimi TS, Brewer RD, Mokdad A, Denny C, Serdula MK, Marks JS. Binge drinking among US adults. JAMA. 2003 Jan 1;289(1):70-5. doi: 10.1001/jama.289.1.70.

    PubMed 12503979
  • Matjasko JL, Cawley JH, Baker-Goering MM, Yokum DV. Applying Behavioral Economics to Public Health Policy: Illustrative Examples and Promising Directions. Am J Prev Med. 2016 May;50(5 Suppl 1):S13-S19. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2016.02.007.

    PubMed 27102853
  • Schneider TR, Salovey P, Apanovitch AM, Pizarro J, McCarthy D, Zullo J, Rothman AJ. The effects of message framing and ethnic targeting on mammography use among low-income women. Health Psychol. 2001 Jul;20(4):256-66. doi: 10.1037//0278-6133.20.4.256.

    PubMed 11515737
  • Toll BA, O'Malley SS, Katulak NA, Wu R, Dubin JA, Latimer A, Meandzija B, George TP, Jatlow P, Cooney JL, Salovey P. Comparing gain- and loss-framed messages for smoking cessation with sustained-release bupropion: a randomized controlled trial. Psychol Addict Behav. 2007 Dec;21(4):534-44. doi: 10.1037/0893-164X.21.4.534.

    PubMed 18072836
  • List JA, Samek AS. The behavioralist as nutritionist: leveraging behavioral economics to improve child food choice and consumption. J Health Econ. 2015 Jan;39:135-46. doi: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2014.11.002. Epub 2014 Nov 21.

    PubMed 25530206
  • MacKillop J, Amlung MT, Few LR, Ray LA, Sweet LH, Munafo MR. Delayed reward discounting and addictive behavior: a meta-analysis. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2011 Aug;216(3):305-21. doi: 10.1007/s00213-011-2229-0. Epub 2011 Mar 4.

    PubMed 21373791
  • Petry NM, Martin B, Cooney JL, Kranzler HR. Give them prizes, and they will come: contingency management for treatment of alcohol dependence. J Consult Clin Psychol. 2000 Apr;68(2):250-7. doi: 10.1037//0022-006x.68.2.250.

    PubMed 10780125
  • Loewenstein G, Brennan T, Volpp KG. Asymmetric paternalism to improve health behaviors. JAMA. 2007 Nov 28;298(20):2415-7. doi: 10.1001/jama.298.20.2415. No abstract available.

    PubMed 18042920
  • Patel MS, Asch DA, Volpp KG. Wearable devices as facilitators, not drivers, of health behavior change. JAMA. 2015 Feb 3;313(5):459-60. doi: 10.1001/jama.2014.14781. No abstract available.

    PubMed 25569175
  • Sobell LC, Brown J, Leo GI, Sobell MB. The reliability of the Alcohol Timeline Followback when administered by telephone and by computer. Drug Alcohol Depend. 1996 Sep;42(1):49-54. doi: 10.1016/0376-8716(96)01263-x.

    PubMed 8889403
  • Case MA, Burwick HA, Volpp KG, Patel MS. Accuracy of smartphone applications and wearable devices for tracking physical activity data. JAMA. 2015 Feb 10;313(6):625-6. doi: 10.1001/jama.2014.17841. No abstract available.

    PubMed 25668268
  • South EC, Kondo MC, Cheney RA, Branas CC. Neighborhood blight, stress, and health: a walking trial of urban greening and ambulatory heart rate. Am J Public Health. 2015 May;105(5):909-13. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2014.302526. Epub 2015 Mar 19.

    PubMed 25790382
  • Byrnes HF, Miller BA, Wiebe DJ, Morrison CN, Remer LG, Wiehe SE. Tracking Adolescents With Global Positioning System-Enabled Cell Phones to Study Contextual Exposures and Alcohol and Marijuana Use: A Pilot Study. J Adolesc Health. 2015 Aug;57(2):245-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.04.013.

    PubMed 26206448

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Loss-framed text message and Gain-Framed text message in people with Alcohol Drinking and Alcohol Intoxication, run by University of Pennsylvania at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 6 inclusion and 5 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 8 Aug 2018. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

The primary outcome measure will be the change in proportion of breathalyzer measurements submitted with self-reported drinking episodes across groups. (time frame: baseline up to 8 weeks). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT03335735, which also lists 16 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 8 Aug 2018.

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