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Completed

NCT Number: NCT02918565

Mechanisms for Alcohol Treatment Change [MATCH] Study

A 5-arm randomized trial to determine what components of a text message intervention are necessary to reduce hazardous drinking among young adults and mechanisms through which these changes occur.

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Key information

Conditions

Alcohol Consumption Alcohol Drinking Behavior Drinking Behavior

Age range

18 year–25 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Emergency Department

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 15261, United States

About this study

Young adults ages 18-25 have high rates of hazardous alcohol use and alcohol-related consequences. The Emergency Department (ED) provides an important opportunity to identify young adult hazardous drinkers who could benefit from interventions. A Text Message (TM) intervention was shown to reduce alcohol consumption among young adult ED patients, showing durable effects over 9-months. The TM intervention uses behavior change techniques with the largest effect sizes in an alcohol intervention meta-analysis: "goal commitment" and "self-monitoring", along with real-time "feedback". However, the unique effect of these ingredients, and mechanisms (processes occurring within the individual) through which they operate to reduce drinking remain unclear, a critical gap addressed by this project. Young adult ED patients (ages 18-25) who screen positive for hazardous drinking will be recruited to participate in a randomized trial to determine how best to help individuals reduce hazardous drinking. All participants will be asked to complete web-based surveys at baseline, 12 and 24 weeks after enrollment, complete brief psychomotor tasks weekly for 14 weeks, and respond to text messages each Thursday and Sunday for the next 12 weeks. Those randomized to the TM interventions will additionally receive feedback on their text reports. The four TM intervention arms are: (1) Drinking Cognition Feedback (DCF), (2) Alcohol Risk Feedback (ARF), (3) Adaptive Goal Support (AGS) and (4) a combination of DCF, ARF, and AGS=COMBO). Study results have implications for designing efficient mobile interventions, and developing a dynamic theory of behavior change.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • total score of >2 for women or >3 for men on the AUDIT-C
  • at least 1 binged drinking episode in the prior 30 days

Exclusion criteria

  • no cell phone with text messaging
  • have been diagnosed with an alcohol or substance use disorder
  • pregnant or planning pregnancy
  • taking medicine for a psychiatric disorder (including depression, anxiety)
  • taking any medicine that could interact with alcohol

Treatment and study plan

Drinking Cognition Feedback (DCF)

Behavioral

12 weeks of interactive text messaging focused on providing feedback related only to pre-weekend drinking cognitions (plans, desire to get drunk).

Alcohol Risk Feedback (ARF)

Behavioral

12 weeks of interactive text messaging focused on providing feedback related only to post-weekend alcohol consumption (max drinks consumed on any occasion over the weekend).

Adaptive Goal Support (AGS)

Behavioral

12 weeks of interactive text messaging focused on providing adaptive goal support (based on running average of max drinks consumed).

COMBO

Behavioral

12 weeks of interactive text messaging incorporating features of DCF, ARF and AGS.

Primary outcomes

  1. Number of Binge Drinking Days

    Time frame: 12 weeks after starting intervention

    Measured by the # days on the Timeline Followback Calendar that a male reported 5+ drinks or a female reported 4+ drinks

Secondary outcomes

  1. Drinks Per Drinking Day

    Time frame: 12 weeks after starting intervention

    drinks per drinking day = mean drinks divided by the number of days with any alcohol consumption using the 30-day TLFB Calendar.

  2. Count of Participants With Any Binge Drinking Day

    Time frame: 12 weeks after starting intervention

    Using the Timeline Followback Calendar, any male participant reported one or more days with 5+ drinks or a female with one or more days with 4+ drinks are coded=1; otherwise participant is coded=0

  3. Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire Score

    Time frame: 12 weeks after starting intervention

    Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire (B-YAACQ). The B-YAACQ is a 24-item measure of alcohol- related problems that utilizes a dichotomous (present or absent) scoring format. Sum of items 1-48. Higher scores (count of items marked as 'present') on the B-YAACQ not only indicate a wider variety but also reflect a more severe pattern of alcohol-related problems.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Pittsburgh

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

Registry information

Acronym: MATCH

Important dates

Study start
2016
Primary completion
2021
Study completion
2021
First posted
Sep 29, 2016
Registry last updated
Dec 5, 2023

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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