Brief web-based intervention for college students with comorbid risky alcohol use and depressed mood: Does it work and for whom?

Abstract

College is a time of increased risk for problematic alcohol use and depressed mood. The comorbidity of these conditions is well documented, but is less well understood, with few interventions designed to prevent or reduce the related consequences. The current study evaluated a web-based personalized intervention for students (N=311) who reported an AUDIT score of 8 or more, a BDI-II score of 14 or more, and reported drinking four (women) or five (men) or more drinks on at least one occasion in the past month. Method: Invited participants were randomly selected from all enrolled undergraduates at a large, public, Pacific Northwestern university. Participants completed a screening and baseline assessment, and those who met study eligibility criteria were randomized to one of four conditions (alcohol only, depressed mood only, integrated, and referral-only control). Follow-up occurred one-month post-intervention. Results: While no main effects for the interventions were found, there were moderation effects, such that students in the alcohol only and integrated conditions who had lower levels of depressed mood or alcohol-related problems at baseline showed greater reductions in alcohol-related problems at follow-up compared to students in the control condition. Implications for interventions are discussed.

Technology-Based Interventions for Substance Use and Comorbid Disorders: An Examination of the Emerging Literature

“…Our literature search yielded five TBIs for SUDs and comorbid disorders that were tested in six randomized controlled trials (RCTs); four TBIs targeted comorbid SUDs and depression 63,64,66,67,69 and one TBI targeted comorbid SUDs and PTSD. 71 Comparison groups varied widely among the RCTs and included active treatment with a live therapist, 63,64 active online intervention, 69 online attention-control, 66 delayed intervention, 71 and generic “thank you” text messages (of non-comparative attention to TBI).…”

“…71 Comparison groups varied widely among the RCTs and included active treatment with a live therapist, 63,64 active online intervention, 69 online attention-control, 66 delayed intervention, 71 and generic “thank you” text messages (of non-comparative attention to TBI). 67 …”

“…69 Unlike the previously described TBIs that included multiple sessions/modules, this TBI was a single session, brief personalized feedback intervention modeled from social norms approaches that have been shown to be efficacious in reducing heavy alcohol use and related consequences in college students. 77 The integrated intervention was compared to two TBIs targeting single symptoms (alcohol-only and mood-only) as well as an assessment-only control condition.…”

“…Five TBIs for comorbid SUD and other psychiatric disorders were tested in six randomized controlled trials. There was substantial variability in the methodological quality of the studies, with only three studies including an active comparison group, 63,64,69 and three studies reporting effect sizes. 63,66,67 …”

“…The comorbidity combinations varied across studies, with four TBIs developed for SUDs and depression, 63–69 two for SUDs and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), 70–73 one for SUDs and Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), 74 and two for SUDs, depression, and anxiety. 75,76 Table 1 provides a description of the studies that have examined these TBIs.…”