Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology. 26(4):347–353, AUG 2018
DOI: 10.1037/pha0000213
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PMID: 29952619
Issn Print: 1064-1297
Publication Date: 2018/08/01
Self-Regulation as a Mediator of the Effects of a Brief Behavioral Economic Intervention on Alcohol-Related Outcomes: A Preliminary Analysis
Kathryn Soltis;Samuel Acuff;Ashley Dennhardt;Brian Borsari;Matthew Martens;James Murphy;
+ Author Information
Department of Psychology, University of MemphisMental Health Service (116B), San Francisco Veterans Affairs Health Care System, San Francisco, California, and Department of Psychiatry, University of California–San FranciscoDepartment of Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology, University of MissouriDepartment of Psychology, University of Memphis
Abstract
Behavioral economic theory suggests that increased engagement in constructive, substance-free activities that are in the service of long-term goals (e.g., college graduation, career development, health) can decrease alcohol use and related problems. However, engaging in activities such as these in the high-risk college environment requires the ability to self-regulate by avoiding rewarding but risky behaviors (e.g., drinking) while also effectively organizing behavior in the pursuit of delayed academic and career-related rewards. The current secondary data analyses evaluated self-regulation as a potential mechanism of behavior change in an alcohol intervention trial that compared a standard alcohol-focused brief motivational intervention (BMI) plus a behavioral economic substance-free activity session (SFAS) with an alcohol BMI plus relaxation training (reaction time [RT]) session (Murphy et al., 2012). Participants were 82 first-year undergraduate students (50% women; Mage = 18.5, SD = .71) who reported 2 or more past-month heavy drinking episodes. After completing a baseline assessment and an individual alcohol-focused BMI, participants were randomized to either the SFAS or the RT session. The BMI + SFAS condition reported greater mean self-regulation at 1 month compared with BMI + RT. Furthermore, self-regulation at 1 month significantly mediated the relation between condition and alcohol-related outcomes at 6-month follow-up. Although preliminary, these results suggest that brief behavioral economic intervention elements that an attempt to increase future goal pursuit and substance-free activities can enhance the short-term efficacy of standard alcohol BMIs and that this effect may be due in part to increases in self-regulation.
