Adaptive Preventive Intervention for College Alcohol Use

Personalized normative feedback is generated by a process in which: (1) baseline surveys gather respondent information; (2) a computer program links the data with algorithms to select feedback messages; (3) a format for feedback presentation is specified; and (4) the program generates output. Norms will focus on prevalence of drinking, consuming 4/5+ drinks, total number of drinks consumed each week, and maximum drinks consumed. Normative information will be from the national Monitoring the Future (MTF) study college student sample and the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. Students will be sent a link to a website where they see their own personal responses in the feedback. Feedback will detail quantity and frequency of drinking (a) reported by the participant him/herself, (b) according to the participant's perception of the descriptive norm for drinking quantity and frequency for the reference group, and (c) reflecting the actual descriptive norm for the reference group.

Students will be asked to self-report their alcohol use every 2 weeks in response to two main questions (frequency of 4/5+ drinking in the past 2 weeks, frequency of past 2-week 8/10+ drinking), as well as consequences of their drinking. The therapeutic role of SM is two-fold. First, SM facilitates deliberate attention to and reflection on the person's actions, the conditions under which these actions occur, and their consequences (Bandura, 1998; Kanfer, 1970). Hence, SM of drinking behaviors and consequences has the potential to promote awareness of problematic drinking and need for health services. Second, SM affords the opportunity to obtain ongoing information concerning the target behavior, which can be used to inform timely intervention decisions (Nahum-Shani et al., 2016)

Web-BASICS is delivered online and responds to individual participant input with the same motivational information and feedback as used in the in-person BASICS intervention. In-person BASICS content (Dimeff et. al., 1999) was developed for online use in studies conducted by Drs. Larimer and Lee (e.g., LaBrie et al., 2013; Lee et al., 2014; Neighbors et al., 2012a). Web-BASICS feedback contains text and graphical feedback regarding students' reported drinking quantity, frequency, peak alcohol consumption, and blood alcohol content (BAC), risks for alcohol problems based on participant family history and consumption patterns, protective behaviors the participant already uses and others he/she might consider, and a tips page with a BAC chart, information on reduced-risk drinking, and where to get more information. Participants can print and/or view their individualized content online for up to 3 months.

A health promotion consultation via a campus clinic is a confidential exploration of student drug and alcohol use. Health Promotion Consultants help students assess how their alcohol and other substance use affects their life and learn how to make healthier decisions.

A health coach will correspond with students via a secure online chat platform, utilizing motivational interviewing strategies to encourage students to consider their values and goals, the possibility of behavior change, and available services. The goal of the dialogue is to motivate the student to access alcohol use interventions (Web-BASICS or an in-person health promotion consultation).