Brief Academic Future Thinking Intervention for College Student Drinkers

Heavy Drinking Clinical Trial

Official title:

Episodic Future Thinking as a Brief Alcohol Intervention for Heavy Drinking College Students: A Pilot Feasibility Study

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT04275739
• Other study ID #: PRO-FY2017-587
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: January 20, 2018
• Est. completion date: August 30, 2019

Study information

• Verified date: February 2020
• Source: University of Memphis
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The present study investigated the feasibility, acceptability, and initial utility of a brief academic goal-relevant episodic future thinking (A-EFT) task among heavy college drinkers.

First, the study attempts to extend the temporal reach of EFT interventions which have demonstrated immediate reductions in discounting, and alcohol demand. The current study utilized a longitudinal design to evaluate whether EFT can change drinking behavior outside the lab in heavy drinking college students. The two-group experimental design included an active control group, weekly booster contact, and 1-month follow-up. Second, this study seeks to investigate whether the process of engaging in EFT is sufficient to produce effects when cues are not presented during the decision-making task. Lastly, this study adds an academic goal-related focus to the EFT task based on previous research indicating that forming meaningful academic goals is protective against drinking and associated problems.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 45
• Est. completion date: August 30, 2019
• Est. primary completion date: August 30, 2019
• Accepts healthy volunteers: No
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years to 25 Years

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Full-time Freshman/Sophomore Student

• 2+ Recent heavy drinking episodes (4/5 standard drinks in one sitting for men/women)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Current or past substance abuse treatment

• Current moderate/severe depressive symptoms

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Heavy Drinking

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Academic Episodic Future Thinking
Brief Academic goal related EFT intervention involving desirable outcomes of current academic goals

Other:
• Vivid Memory Task
Matched for time control task involving recall of vivid memories of distinct events/actions from a children's story

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	The University of Memphis	Memphis	Tennessee

Sponsors (1)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
University of Memphis

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Daily Drinking Questionnaire	Indicate how many standard drinks were consumed on each day of a "typical week" in the past month	Baseline
Primary	Daily Drinking Questionnaire	Indicate how many standard drinks were consumed on each day of a "typical week" in the past month	1-month post
Primary	Alcohol-Related Consequences	Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire - Indicate "yes" or "no" to experiencing each alcohol-related consequences in the past month	Baseline
Primary	Alcohol-Related Consequences	Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire - Indicate "yes" or "no" to experiencing each alcohol-related consequences in the past month	1-month post
Primary	Alcohol Demand	Alcohol Purchase Task - Indicate hypothetical alcohol purchase behavior at a variety of price points	Baseline
Primary	Alcohol Demand	Alcohol Purchase Task - Indicate hypothetical alcohol purchase behavior at a variety of price points	Post-session - immediately after intervention;control
Primary	Alcohol Demand	Alcohol Purchase Task - Indicate hypothetical alcohol purchase behavior at a variety of price points	1-month post
Primary	Delayed Reward Discounting	5-Choice Minute Discounting task - Indicate preference for various choices of immediate small vs. larger delayed rewards	Baseline
Primary	Delayed Reward Discounting	5-Choice Minute Discounting task - Indicate preference for various choices of immediate small vs. larger delayed rewards	Post-session - immediately after intervention/control
Primary	Delayed Reward Discounting	5-Choice Minute Discounting task - Indicate preference for various choices of immediate small vs. larger delayed rewards	1-month post
Secondary	Protective Behavioral Strategies	Indicate frequency of use of each protective strategy on a 1-6 Likert-type scale (1 = Never, 6 = Always)	Baseline
Secondary	Protective Behavioral Strategies	Indicate frequency of use of each protective strategy on a 1-6 Likert-type scale (1 = Never, 6 = Always)	1-month post
Secondary	Academic Engagement	Single item assessing time spent studying during the past week	Baseline
Secondary	Academic Engagement	Single item assessing time spent studying during the past week	1-month post