Using self-help materials to motivate change at assessment for alcohol treatment.

The utility of a brief self-help booklet provided at assessment for alcohol treatment was evaluated using a quasi-experimental design (booklet provided to all clients for one month at a time, interspersed by one month of no booklets, for a 6-month period). While the booklet did not result in any significant reduction in client attrition, clients who received the booklet at their assessment were drinking less by the 6-month follow-up than those who did not receive the booklet. Limitations of this study, including the quasi-experimental design and the impact of the low baseline attrition rates, are discussed.