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Two‐Year Outcome of Alcohol Interventions in Swedish University Halls of Residence: A Cluster Randomized Trial of a Brief Skills Training Program, Twelve‐Step–Influenced Intervention, and Controls
Author(s) -
Ståhlbrandt Henriettæ,
Johnsson Kent O.,
Berglund Mats
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
alcoholism: clinical and experimental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.267
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1530-0277
pISSN - 0145-6008
DOI - 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2006.00327.x
Subject(s) - alcohol use disorders identification test , psychological intervention , audit , residence , randomized controlled trial , alcohol consumption , medicine , intervention (counseling) , cluster randomised controlled trial , brief intervention , population , cluster (spacecraft) , physical therapy , psychology , gerontology , alcohol , poison control , demography , injury prevention , environmental health , psychiatry , surgery , chemistry , management , sociology , biochemistry , computer science , economics , programming language
Background: High‐risk alcohol consumption among university students is well documented. Several types of intervention have proved to be effective in reducing alcohol consumption. This study examines the 2‐year outcome of 2 different alcohol intervention programs at university halls of residence. Methods: Ninety‐eight university halls of residence (with 556 students) were cluster randomized to 2 different intervention groups: a brief skills training program (BSTP) with interactive lectures and discussions, a twelve‐step–influenced (TSI) program with didactic lectures by therapists trained in the 12‐step approach, and a control group. All students completing the baseline assessment received personalized feedback by mail. Students responded to mailed follow‐up questionnaires after 1, 2, and 3 years, including alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT; years 2 and 3), short index of problems (SIP), and estimated blood alcohol concentration (eBAC). Results: All groups significantly reduced their AUDIT scores from baseline to the second year follow‐up, with no significant differences between the groups. Seventy‐seven percent of the students belonged to a population with high‐risk consumption, using the AUDIT cut‐off scores of 8 and 4 for men and women, respectively. Students with high‐risk alcohol consumption showed significant differences in AUDIT score reduction in favor of the BSTP compared with controls, and had a tendency to show better results than the TSI intervention ( p =0.06). Similar trends could be seen using SIP and eBAC. The TSI did not differ significantly from the control group within the group of students with high‐risk alcohol consumption. Conclusions: This study suggests that a BSTP is effective as an intervention in students with high‐risk alcohol consumption.