Lara N Moody1, Allison N Tegge2, Lindsey M Poe3, Mikhail N Koffarnus1, Warren K Bickel4. 1. Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, Roanoke, VA, USA; Virginia Tech, Department of Psychology, Blacksburg, VA, USA. 2. Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, Roanoke, VA, USA; Virginia Tech, Department of Statistics, Blacksburg, VA, USA. 3. Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, Roanoke, VA, USA. 4. Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, Roanoke, VA, USA; Virginia Tech, Department of Psychology, Blacksburg, VA, USA. Electronic address: wkbickel@vtc.vt.edu.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: For many people with alcohol use disorders, alcohol drinking is a highly ingrained and automatized behavior with negative long-term health consequences. Implementation intentions, a behavioral intervention that links high-risk drinking situations with alternative, healthier responses, provide a means to intervene on habitual drinking behaviors. Here, a pilot treatment using implementation intentions was assessed with remote assessments and treatment prompts. METHODS:Treatment-seeking individuals with alcohol use disorder between the ages of 18 and 65 were recruited from the community from October 2014 to November 2016. Participants (N=35) were quasi-randomly assigned to complete either active (n=18) orcontrol (n=17) two-week implementation intention interventions. Active implementation intentions linked high-risk situations with alternative responses whereas the control condition selected situations and responses but did not link these together. Daily ecological momentary interventions of participant-tailored implementation intentions were delivered via text message. Alcohol consumption was assessed once daily with self-reported ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) of drinks consumed the previous day and thrice daily remotely submitted breathalyzer samples to assess reliability of self-reports. RESULTS: On drinking days (80% of days), the active implementation intentions group reduced alcohol consumption during the intervention period compared to the control condition; however the difference between consumption was not observed at one-month follow-up. DISCUSSION: The implementation intention intervention was associated with a 1.09 drink per day decrease in alcohol consumption on drinking days compared to a decrease of 0.29 drinks per day in the control condition. Future studies may combine implementation intentions with other treatments to help individuals to reduce alcohol consumption.
RCT Entities:
INTRODUCTION: For many people with alcohol use disorders, alcohol drinking is a highly ingrained and automatized behavior with negative long-term health consequences. Implementation intentions, a behavioral intervention that links high-risk drinking situations with alternative, healthier responses, provide a means to intervene on habitual drinking behaviors. Here, a pilot treatment using implementation intentions was assessed with remote assessments and treatment prompts. METHODS: Treatment-seeking individuals with alcohol use disorder between the ages of 18 and 65 were recruited from the community from October 2014 to November 2016. Participants (N=35) were quasi-randomly assigned to complete either active (n=18) or control (n=17) two-week implementation intention interventions. Active implementation intentions linked high-risk situations with alternative responses whereas the control condition selected situations and responses but did not link these together. Daily ecological momentary interventions of participant-tailored implementation intentions were delivered via text message. Alcohol consumption was assessed once daily with self-reported ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) of drinks consumed the previous day and thrice daily remotely submitted breathalyzer samples to assess reliability of self-reports. RESULTS: On drinking days (80% of days), the active implementation intentions group reduced alcohol consumption during the intervention period compared to the control condition; however the difference between consumption was not observed at one-month follow-up. DISCUSSION: The implementation intention intervention was associated with a 1.09 drink per day decrease in alcohol consumption on drinking days compared to a decrease of 0.29 drinks per day in the control condition. Future studies may combine implementation intentions with other treatments to help individuals to reduce alcohol consumption.
Authors: Liqa N Athamneh; Jeremiah Brown; Jeffrey S Stein; Kirstin M Gatchalian; Stephen M LaConte; Warren K Bickel Journal: Exp Clin Psychopharmacol Date: 2021-04-22 Impact factor: 3.492
Authors: Jogé Boumans; Dike van de Mheen; Rik Crutzen; Hans Dupont; Rob Bovens; Andrea Rozema Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2022-03-08 Impact factor: 3.390