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Heavy DrinkingNCT05398315

Interactive Alcohol Decision-Making Programs

A study testing Empathic Statements/Reflections, Narrator Backstory and Male Narrator in people with Heavy Drinking, run by Wayne State University 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 develop a maximally effective, computer-delivered brief intervention (CDBI) for reducing heavy alcohol use. More specifically, the investigators will examine outcomes of different versions of a CDBI in which the presence/absence of empathic statements, the gender of the narrator, the… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
Conditions the study is for
Heavy Drinking
What is being tested?
Empathic Statements/Reflections, Narrator Backstory and Male Narrator
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
352 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
1 Jul 2021to 1 Apr 2023
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 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Over age 18
  • Access to the internet.
  • Males must consume at least 14 drinks per week or 4 drinks per day
  • Females must consume at least 7 drinks per week or 3 drinks per day

Who cannot join

  • Under age 18
  • No internet access
  • Males who consume less than 14 drinks per week or 4 drinks per day
  • Females who consume less than 7 drinks per week or 3 drinks per day

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • Wayne State University

    Detroit, Michigan, 48202

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Testing the Efficacy of Interactive Alcohol Decision-Making Program

This project aims to develop a maximally effective, computer-delivered brief intervention (CDBI) for reducing heavy alcohol use. More specifically, the investigators will examine outcomes of different versions of a CDBI in which the presence/absence of empathic statements, the gender of the narrator, the presence/absence of a narrator backstory, and the use/non-use of motivational interviewing techniques are systematically manipulated using a factorial design. Participants (352 heavy drinkers) will be randomly assigned to 1 of 16 intervention conditions, representing all combinations of the 4 variables being manipulated. The investigators hypothesize that there will be significant main effects of all four factors being manipulated on (a) subjective reactions to the CDBI and (b) alcohol outcomes at 1-month follow-up

Read the detailed description

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimates that 19.3 million individuals ages 12 and over met criteria for an alcohol use disorder in the past year, fully 87.4% of whom neither received any treatment in the past 12 months, nor wanted it. Recognition of this tremendous gap has led to efforts, both nationally and internationally, to implement proactive screening and brief intervention. Brief interventions have proven efficacious in reducing unhealthy drinking with effect sizes in meta-analyses ranging from small to moderate. Brief interventions are also uniquely applicable to non-treatment-seeking populations, who may refuse extended treatment but accept a minimal, opportunistic intervention. However, the public health impact of brief interventions has been limited by substantial difficulty with implementation. Further, positive overall findings in meta-analyses obscure the results of multiple rigorous efficacy trials showing no brief intervention effect on alcohol use. Both of these issues-the implementation challenges and the inconsistency in outcomes-suggest that changes are needed before brief alcohol interventions can meet their full potential.

Technology offers exciting potential in both respects. First, computer-delivered brief interventions (CDBIs) can be presented inexpensively, with perfect fidelity, and without the need for training or provider time. Second, their replicability, flexibility, and modularity makes them the perfect platform for (a) isolating the active ingredients that are associated with positive outcomes; and thereby (b) continually optimizing CDBIs to achieve cumulative increases in efficacy.

The overall goal of this research is to develop a maximally effective and replicable CDBI for reducing heavy alcohol use. To accomplish this, the investigators will use the Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST), an efficient method for optimizing intervention content that uses factorial designs to evaluate main and interaction effects of specific intervention components. The selection of components will be guided by: (a) Common Factors Theory, which highlights the tremendous contribution of relational factors, such as empathy, alliance and positive regard to therapy outcomes, but which is of unknown relevance to CDBIs; and (b) the Media Equation Theory, which suggests that people automatically respond to computers in social ways, particularly when those computers replicate human characteristics. Guided by this literature, the investigators will examine outcomes of a CDBI in which empathic statements, the gender of the narrator, the presence/absence of a narrator backstory, and the use/non-use of motivational interviewing techniques are systematically manipulated using a factorial design.

Specific aims are as follows:

  1. Develop 16 distinct, time-consistent, computer-delivered sessions representing all possible combinations of the following four factors (each of which will be binary; i.e. either present vs. absent or male vs. female): (1) narrator gender, (2) empathic statements and reflections, (3) narrator backstory, and (4) use of motivational techniques.
  2. Evaluate main and interaction effects of the five factors by randomly assigning 352 heavy drinkers to the 16 sessions (each of the four factors being presented to half of the participants) and evaluating (1) subjective reactions to the CDBI at baseline and (2) alcohol use at 1-month follow-up.

Hypothesis 1. Subjective reactions to the CDBI, disclosure of alcohol use and consequences, and motivation to reduce alcohol use will be higher and alcohol use at follow-up will be lower in the presence of (1) empathic statements, (2) a narrator backstory and (3) motivational techniques. The effects of narrator gender will be examined in an exploratory way (i.e., no a priori hypotheses).

Hypothesis 2. Subjective reactions will be more positive, disclosure and motivation to reduce alcohol use will be higher, and alcohol use at follow-up will be lower when the two relational factors (empathy and narrator backstory) are combined with the presence of motivational content.

Conditions
Heavy Drinking
Being tested
Empathic Statements/Reflections, Narrator Backstory, Male Narrator, Female Narrator, MI Techniques
Keywords
Alcohol, Common Factors, Motivational Interviewing, Factorial Design

What participants receive

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

  • Empathic Statements/ReflectionsBehavioural

    Presence of Empathic Statements

  • Narrator BackstoryBehavioural

    Presence of a narrator backstory

  • Male NarratorBehavioural

    Presence of a male narrator

  • Female NarratorBehavioural

    Presence of a female narrator

  • MI TechniquesBehavioural

    Presence of MI techniques

Study groups in NCT05398315
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Empathic Statements, MI, Male, No BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements and MI techniques. Male narrator. No narrator backstory.
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Male Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques
No Empathic Statements, No MI, Female, No BackstoryExperimentalNo empathic statements, MI techniques or narrator backstory. Female narrator
Receives: Behavioral: Female Narrator
No Empathic Statements, No MI, Female, BackstoryExperimentalNo empathic statements or MI techniques. Presence of narrator backstory. Female narrator
Receives: Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Female Narrator
Empathic Statements, MI, Female, BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements, MI techniques and narrator backstory. Female narrator
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Female Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques
No Empathic Statements, No MI, Male, No BackstoryExperimentalNo empathic statements, MI techniques or narrator backstory. Male narrator
Receives: Behavioral: Male Narrator
Empathic Statements, MI, Male, BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements, MI techniques and narrator backstory. Male narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Male Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques
No Empathic Statements, MI, Female, BackstoryExperimentalPresence of MI techniques and narrator backstory. No empathic statements. Female narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Female Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques
Empathic Statements, No MI, Male, No BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements. No MI techniques or narrator backstory. Male narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Male Narrator
No Empathic Statements, MI, Male, BackstoryExperimentalPresence of MI techniques and narrator backstory. No empathic statements. Male narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Male Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques
Empathic Statements, No MI, Female, No BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements. No MI techniques or narrator backstory. Female narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Female Narrator
Empathic Statements, MI, Female, No BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements and MI techniques. Female narrator. No narrator backstory.
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Female Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques
No Empathic Statements, No MI, Male, BackstoryExperimentalPresence of narrator backstory. No empathic statements or MI techniques. Male narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Male Narrator
Empathic Statements, No MI, Female, BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements and narrator backstory. No MI techniques. Female narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Female Narrator
Empathic Statements, No MI, Male, BackstoryExperimentalPresence of empathic statements and narrator backstory. No MI techniques. Male narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Empathic Statements/Reflections; Behavioral: Narrator Backstory; Behavioral: Male Narrator
No Empathic Statements, MI, Female, No BackstoryExperimentalPresence of MI techniques. No empathic statements or narrator backstory. Female narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Female Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques
No Empathic Statements, MI, Male, No BackstoryExperimentalPresence of MI techniques. No empathic statements or narrator backstory. Male narrator.
Receives: Behavioral: Male Narrator; Behavioral: MI Techniques

What is being measured

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

  1. Change in Quantity and Frequency of Alcohol Use

    The Timeline Followback Questionnaire (TLFB) will be given to assess past month alcohol use.

    Measured: Given pre-intervention and at 1-month follow-up

  2. Change in Alcohol-Related Consequences

    Assessed with the Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire which assess the occurrence/ non-occurrence of 24 alcohol consequences.

    Measured: Given pre-intervention and at 1-month follow-up

  3. Participant Satisfaction with the Intervention

    Fifteen item measure assessing how much participants liked the intervention and felt respected by it.

    Measured: Given immediately after completing the intervention

Timeline

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

  1. First posted31 May 2022
  2. Study start1 Jul 2021
  3. Primary completion1 Apr 2023
  4. Study completion1 Apr 2023

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
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Factorial
Model description
Four intervention components will be manipulated in a full factorial design, such that each participant either does or does not receive each intervention component.
Masking
Triple blind
Who is masked
Participant, Investigator, Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
352 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT05398315
Sponsor's protocol ID
22-01-4352
Status last verified
Jun 2023
First submitted
19 May 2022
Last updated
6 Jun 2023
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No

Publications

  • Grekin ER, Thomas HA, Ondersma SJ. Testing the efficacy of narrator empathy, self-disclosure, gender, and use of brief motivational interviewing techniques in a brief internet-based intervention for alcohol use. Psychol Addict Behav. 2024 May;38(3):231-242. doi: 10.1037/adb0001003. Epub 2024 Mar 14.

    PubMed 38483522

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Empathic Statements/Reflections, Narrator Backstory and Male Narrator in people with Heavy Drinking, run by Wayne State University 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 4 inclusion and 4 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 6 Jun 2023. 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?

Change in Quantity and Frequency of Alcohol Use (time frame: Given pre-intervention and at 1-month follow-up). The study lists 3 primary outcomes in all. 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 NCT05398315, which also lists 1 linked publication.

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 6 Jun 2023.

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