Heavy drinking is a major issue for substantial portions of the population, and particularly for college students. With such widespread issues, home-based treatment is particularly useful, because it can be accessed by the large numbers of people who could benefit from it. One study developed a home-based program and assessed its usefulness for heavy drinkers (McGeary et al., 2014). This article will briefly discuss that study.
Methods
The participants examined in this study consisted of 41 male undergraduate students who had scored higher than an 8 on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). The participants were randomly assigned into either the Attention Modification Program (AMP, the intervention group) or the Attention Control Condition (ACC, the control group). The study lasted for four weeks, and Calahan’s Drinking Habits Questionnaire (DHQ) was used to assess changes in drinking habits from baseline to the completion of the study.
The experiment proceeded as follows:
- In the initial training session:
- All participants completed the DHQ.
- Both groups were presented with 24 alcohol-related words and 24 neutral words.
- Of the 24 alcohol-related words, each participant selected the 10 words that were most relatable to their personal drinking experience.
- Of the 24 neutral words, each participant selected 10 words not related to drinking.
- After this initial session:
- All participants were given USB drives containing the training program which will be described below.
- Participants were asked to complete the program at home twice a week for the duration of the study (four weeks).
- All participants were given USB drives containing the training program which will be described below.
- Upon completion of the study, all participants returned to the laboratory to complete the DHQ again.
The training program completed at home consisted of the following:
- 360 trials per session (eight sessions total over the four weeks) of a probe detection paradigm.
- In each trial, two words would appear on the screen (one above the other) for 500 ms, then a “probe” would appear in the position of one of the words that consisted of either the letter E or the letter F.
- If E appeared, the participant had to click on a corresponding E button, while if F appeared, the participant had to click on a corresponding F button.
- In the AMP group, the “probe” always appeared where the neutral word had been.
- In the ACC group, the “probe” appeared where either the alcohol-related word or the neutral word had been with equal frequency.
- In each trial, two words would appear on the screen (one above the other) for 500 ms, then a “probe” would appear in the position of one of the words that consisted of either the letter E or the letter F.
Results
The following results were obtained:
- Participants in the AMP group showed significant decreases in drinking following treatment.
- Participants in the ACC group showed no significant change in drinking following treatment.
In other words, the training program meant to reduce drinking was significantly more effective in reducing drinking than the control program.
Wrapping up
Ultimately, the program described in this study was effective in reducing drinking in college students. As a mostly home-based program, these results are promising, as they suggest that a beneficial effect can be obtained in just two months. Future research should continue to examine home-based treatments like this for heavy drinking as well as other disorders.
References
McGeary, J.E., Meadows, S.P., Amir, N., Gibb, B.E. (2014). Computer-delivered, Home-Based, Attentional Retraining Reduces Drinking Behavior in Heavy Drinkers. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 28(2), 559-562. doi: 10.1037/a0036086.
