Alcohol UseNCT07156305
College Student Alcohol Behaviors and Strategies
A study testing Protective Behavioral Strategies and Goal-Setting in people with Alcohol Use, run by University of Wyoming at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The primary goal of this clinical trial is to examine whether the use of personalized goal setting related to protective behavioral strategies (PBS)-behavioral techniques enacted before, during, or after alcohol consumption to reduce risk and minimize harm-increases the use of personally selected PBS implementation. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 25 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Alcohol Use
- What is being tested?
- Protective Behavioral Strategies and Goal-Setting
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 300 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 1 Sep 2025to May 2027
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
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 to 25 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult
Who may be able to join
- Must report being between the ages of 18-25
- Must report engaging in alcohol use at least one time per week over the past two weeks, on average
Who cannot join
- Reports currently receiving or having received treatment for their alcohol or other substance use during the past two months
- Age below 18 or above 25 years
- Does not report having engaged in alcohol use at least one time per week over the past two weeks, on average
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Alison Looby, PhD contact
United States1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
University of Wyoming
Laramie, Wyoming, 82072
Anna M Petrey, BS, 307-314-2111, apetrey@uwyo.edu
Alison Looby, PhD, alooby@uwyo.edu
About this study
The primary goal of this clinical trial is to examine whether the use of personalized goal setting related to protective behavioral strategies (PBS)-behavioral techniques enacted before, during, or after alcohol consumption to reduce risk and minimize harm-increases the use of personally selected PBS implementation. A secondary goal of this trial is to examine whether increasing the frequency of PBS use will lead to decreases in alcohol consumption, fewer alcohol-related negative consequences, and increased alcohol-related positive consequences. Researchers will compare a control condition, a PBS-only condition, and a PBS+Goals condition to address the aims of the study. Participants in all conditions will complete measures about current PBS use, alcohol use and consequences, and likelihood and confidence to change current alcohol and strategy use. All participants will receive brief psychoeducation on PBS. Participants in the PBS-only and PBS+Goals condition will select three PBS to use over the following two weeks, and select a strategy for remembering the PBS they chose. Participants in the PBS+Goals condition will receive psychoeducation about goal setting and identify two goals related to each PBS strategy they selected. Participants in all conditions will complete a follow-up after two weeks containing measures about PBS use, alcohol use and consequences, and likelihood and confidence to change alcohol and strategy use. Participants in the PBS-only and PBS+Goals condition will complete a measure to indicate whether they used the reminder strategy they selected at the two-week follow-up. Participants in the PBS+Goals condition will complete a measure indicating whether they believe they achieved their goals at the two-week follow-up.
- Conditions
- Alcohol Use
- Being tested
- Protective Behavioral Strategies, Goal-Setting
- Keywords
- Protective behavioral strategy, PBS, Protective behavioral strategies, Alcohol use, Alcohol consequences
- Medical subject headings
- Alcohol Drinking
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Protective Behavioral StrategiesBehavioural
Participants receive psychoeducation about protective behavioral strategies and are asked to choose three strategies that they do not already engage in regularly but would be willing to start using more.
Goal-SettingBehavioural
Participants receive psychoeducation about protective behavioral strategies and goal-setting. They are asked to choose three strategies that they do not already engage in regularly and identify two goals related to each strategy.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Control | No intervention | Participants complete measures at baseline and follow-up, and receive psychoeducation on PBS. |
| PBS-only | Active comparator | Participants complete measures at baseline and follow-up, receive psychoeducation about PBS, select three PBS strategies, and select a reminder strategy. Receives: Behavioral: Protective Behavioral Strategies |
| PBS+Goals | Experimental | Participants complete measures at baseline and follow-up, receive psychoeducation about PBS and goal-setting, select three PBS strategies, select two goals related to each PBS strategy chosen, and select a reminder strategy. Receives: Behavioral: Goal-Setting |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Protective Behavioral Strategy Use
Participants will be asked at baseline and follow-up to indicate the frequency they use the various PBS included in the Protective Behavioral Strategies Scale - 20 (PBSS-20) across the past two weeks. Change will be examined across groups as the mean change in past-two-week frequency of PBS use at follow-up relative to baseline.
Measured: Baseline and two-week follow-up.
Alcohol Use
Participants will be asked to complete the Timeline Follow-Back (TLFB), a measure of past-two-week alcohol use, at baseline and follow-up. Change will be examined across groups as mean change in past-two-week alcohol use at at follow-up relative to baseline.
Measured: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Negative Alcohol-Related Consequences
Participants will be asked to report on the total number of negative alcohol-related consequences they have experienced in the past two weeks using the Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire (B-YAACQ). Change will be examined across group as the mean change in number of negative alcohol-related consequences experienced across the past two weeks at follow-up relative to baseline.
Measured: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Positive Alcohol-Related Consequences
Participants will be asked to report on the number of positive alcohol-related consequences they have experienced across the past two weeks at baseline and follow-up using the Positive Drinking Consequences Questionnaire (PDCQ). Change across groups will be examined as the mean change in number of positive alcohol-related consequences at follow-up relative to baseline.
Measured: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Secondary outcomes (2)
Likelihood to Change
Participants will report on the likelihood of them changing their alcohol and PBS use on a scale of 1 (not likely) to 10 (very likely) on a two-item custom measure. Items include: 1. "Please rate how likely you are to make changes to your drinking behaviors, so you drink less or drink in a safer way. Please base the following answer based on how you are feeling RIGHT NOW." and 2. "Please circle how likely you are to try out new strategies to help you drink less or drink more safely. Please base the following answer based on how you are feeling RIGHT NOW." Change will be examined across groups as mean change in likelihood of changing at follow-up relative to baseline.
Measured: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Confidence in Changing
Participants will report how confident they are in changing their alcohol and PBS use on a scale of 1 (not confident) to 10 (very confident) on a two-item custom measure. Items include: 1. "Please circle how confident you are in your ability to change your drinking, so you drink less or drink in a safer way. Please base the following answer based on how you are feeling RIGHT NOW." and 2. "Please circle how confident you are that you could use new strategies to help you drink less or drink more safely. Please base the following answer based on how you are feeling RIGHT NOW." Change will be examined across groups as mean change in confidence of changing at follow-up relative to baseline.
Measured: Baseline and two-week-follow-up
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted5 Sep 2025
- Study start1 Sep 2025
- Primary completionMay 2027 (estimated)
- Study completionMay 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Alcohol UseStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
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
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Participant
- Enrolment
- 300 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Wyoming
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Anna Michelle Petrey, University of Wyoming
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07156305
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- IRB-2025-254
- Status last verified
- Apr 2026
- First submitted
- 26 Aug 2025
- Last updated
- 28 Apr 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 28 Apr 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- College Student Alcohol Behaviors and Strategies
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07156305
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- IRB-2025-254
- Conditions
- Alcohol Use
- Keywords
- Protective behavioral strategy, PBS, Protective behavioral strategies, Alcohol use, Alcohol consequences
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 300 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of WyomingUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Sep 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- May 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion
- May 2027 (estimated)
- First posted
- 5 Sep 2025 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The primary goal of this clinical trial is to examine whether the use of personalized goal setting related to protective behavioral strategies (PBS)-behavioral techniques enacted before, during, or after alcohol consumption to reduce risk and minimize harm-increases the use of personally selected PBS implementation. A secondary goal of this trial is to examine whether increasing the frequency of PBS use will lead to decreases in alcohol consumption, fewer alcohol-related negative consequences, and increased alcohol-related positive consequences. Researchers will compare a control condition, a PBS-only condition, and a PBS+Goals condition to address the aims of the study. Participants in all conditions will complete measures about current PBS use, alcohol use and consequences, and likelihood and confidence to change current alcohol and strategy use. All participants will receive brief psychoeducation on PBS. Participants in the PBS-only and PBS+Goals condition will select three PBS to use over the following two weeks, and select a strategy for remembering the PBS they chose. Participants in the PBS+Goals condition will receive psychoeducation about goal setting and identify two goals related to each PBS strategy they selected. Participants in all conditions will complete a follow-up after two weeks containing measures about PBS use, alcohol use and consequences, and likelihood and confidence to change alcohol and strategy use. Participants in the PBS-only and PBS+Goals condition will complete a measure to indicate whether they used the reminder strategy they selected at the two-week follow-up. Participants in the PBS+Goals condition will complete a measure indicating whether they believe they achieved their goals at the two-week follow-up.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (participant)
- Number of arms
- 3
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Control | No intervention | –Participants complete measures at baseline and follow-up, and receive psychoeducation on PBS. |
| PBS-only | Active comparator | Behavioral: Protective Behavioral StrategiesParticipants complete measures at baseline and follow-up, receive psychoeducation about PBS, select three PBS strategies, and select a reminder strategy. |
| PBS+Goals | Experimental | Behavioral: Goal-SettingParticipants complete measures at baseline and follow-up, receive psychoeducation about PBS and goal-setting, select three PBS strategies, select two goals related to each PBS strategy chosen, and select a reminder strategy. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 25 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult
Key inclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Must report being between the ages of 18-25
- Must report engaging in alcohol use at least one time per week over the past two weeks, on average
Key exclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Reports currently receiving or having received treatment for their alcohol or other substance use during the past two months
- Age below 18 or above 25 years
- Does not report having engaged in alcohol use at least one time per week over the past two weeks, on average
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Protective Behavioral StrategiesParticipants receive psychoeducation about protective behavioral strategies and are asked to choose three strategies that they do not already engage in regularly but would be willing to start using more. | Behavioural | PBS-only |
| Goal-SettingParticipants receive psychoeducation about protective behavioral strategies and goal-setting. They are asked to choose three strategies that they do not already engage in regularly and identify two goals related to each strategy. | Behavioural | PBS+Goals |
Primary outcome
Protective Behavioral Strategy Use
Time frame: Baseline and two-week follow-up.
Participants will be asked at baseline and follow-up to indicate the frequency they use the various PBS included in the Protective Behavioral Strategies Scale - 20 (PBSS-20) across the past two weeks. Change will be examined across groups as the mean change in past-two-week frequency of PBS use at follow-up relative to baseline.
Alcohol Use
Time frame: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Participants will be asked to complete the Timeline Follow-Back (TLFB), a measure of past-two-week alcohol use, at baseline and follow-up. Change will be examined across groups as mean change in past-two-week alcohol use at at follow-up relative to baseline.
Negative Alcohol-Related Consequences
Time frame: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Participants will be asked to report on the total number of negative alcohol-related consequences they have experienced in the past two weeks using the Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire (B-YAACQ). Change will be examined across group as the mean change in number of negative alcohol-related consequences experienced across the past two weeks at follow-up relative to baseline.
Positive Alcohol-Related Consequences
Time frame: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Participants will be asked to report on the number of positive alcohol-related consequences they have experienced across the past two weeks at baseline and follow-up using the Positive Drinking Consequences Questionnaire (PDCQ). Change across groups will be examined as the mean change in number of positive alcohol-related consequences at follow-up relative to baseline.
2 secondary outcomes
Likelihood to Change
Time frame: Baseline and two-week follow-up
Confidence in Changing
Time frame: Baseline and two-week-follow-up
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 28 Apr 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Alison Looby, PhD contact
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Protective Behavioral Strategies and Goal-Setting in people with Alcohol Use, run by University of Wyoming 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 2 inclusion and 3 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: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 28 Apr 2026. 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?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Anna M Petrey, BS (307-314-2111, apetrey@uwyo.edu), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Protective Behavioral Strategy Use (time frame: Baseline and two-week follow-up.). The study lists 4 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
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 28 Apr 2026.