Evaluation of a Single-Session Expectancy Challenge Intervention to Reduce Alcohol Use Among College Students

• Published in: Psychology of addictive behaviors 2008-06, Vol.22 (2), p.168-175
• Main Authors: Lau-Barraco, Cathy, Dunn, Michael E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Alcohol consumption; Alcohol Drinking - psychology; Alcohol education; Alcohol Treatment; Alcohol Use; Alcoholism; Alcoholism - psychology; Alcoholism - rehabilitation; Alcoholism and acute alcohol poisoning; Biological and medical sciences; College Students; Culture; Desintoxication. Drug withdrawal; Expectancy challenge; Expectations; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Health Education; Human; Humans; Intervention; Male; Medical sciences; Motivation; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Psychotherapy, Brief - methods; Set (Psychology); Social Behavior; Toxicology; Treatments; Undergraduate students; Universities
• ISSN: 0893-164X; 1939-1501
• DOI: 10.1037/0893-164X.22.2.168

In this study, the authors developed and evaluated a single-session experiential expectancy challenge (EC) intervention, seeking to reduce alcohol use by changing key positive expectancies among moderate to heavy drinking male and female college students. Participants ( N = 217) were randomly assigned to attend a 90- to 120-min EC session, CD-ROM alcohol education, or assessment only. Participants were assessed at pretest, posttest, and 1-month follow-up. Exposure to the EC intervention led to significant decreases in alcohol expectancies and subsequent alcohol consumption in both genders at follow-up. No significant changes were evident in either control condition. This study is the first to effectively decrease expectancies and drinking in college students with a single-session EC intervention. Further, although several studies have demonstrated the utility of the intervention with men, it is the first to do so with women. This study represents a critical step in the process of translating an innovative, theory-based intervention into a more practical format that makes it more accessible to those who seek effective drinking-reduction strategies for college campuses.