Binge Alcohol Consumption, Binge Drinking
Conditions
Keywords
Binge drinking, Alcohol Brief Intervention, Behaviour change wheel, University students, Romania
Brief summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a behavioural intervention to change binge drinking habits in university students in Romania is feasible. The main research question is: Is a peer-led Alcohol Brief Intervention feasible to be implemented in a Romanian University to reduce binge drinking among students? Researchers will compare brief intervention (counselling) to no intervention. Student participants will: 1. Receive brief counselling for 15-20 minutes by their peers who were trained. 2. Report their alcohol consumption levels in three surveys conducted over three months.
Detailed description
Pre-intervention focus group discussions: Students will be involved in group discussions, up to 90 minutes, to share their perspective on binge drinking. Pre-intervention co-design workshop: Students will be involved in a 3-hour workshop to co-design messages to be used during the brief advice intervention. University staff will be invited to participate in in-depth interviews lasting up to 60 minutes. Intervention: Student participants- They will be administered a pre-intervention survey lasting approximately 60-minutes by research assistants, a 15-20 minutes brief advice/counselling session by their peers, a midline survey of 5 minutes, and an endline survey of approximately 60 minutes administered by research assistants. these students will be invited to take part in a focus group at the end of the intervention lasting 90 minutes. Peers- Peers are students who volunteered to deliver the brief counselling to other students. They will first undergo training by motivational interviewing experts for approximately 6-8 hours spread across 2 days. We intend to recruit 4 peers and each one will deliver the brief advice to 15 students, each session lasting 15-20 minutes. The peers will then be invited to participate in a focus group discussion lasting up to 90 minutes at the end of the intervention.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALPeer-led Alcohol Brief Intervention (identification + advice)
The intervention consists of a peer-led ABI for university students. This intervention aligns with the ABI approach recommended by the WHO as a cost-effective strategy to reduce harmful alcohol use, particularly in primary care and community settings. The brief advice component of the intervention will incorporate Motivational Interviewing (MI) techniques, a client-centred, evidence-based counselling style intervention effective for reducing risky drinking behaviours. The brief advice will be tailored based on behavioural insights identified through formative research, such as individual perceived facilitators and barriers. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test- Consumption (AUDIT-C) will be used as the screening tool for identification. A one-on-one Brief Advice sessions of 15-20 minutes will be delivered by trained peer educators, i.e., university students who are not healthcare professionals but have been specifically trained in delivering brief advice.
Sponsors
Horizon 2020 - European Commission
International Agency for Research on Cancer
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)
Intervention model description
Parallel group cluster randomised trial
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* University students currently enrolled in full-time undergraduate or postgraduate programs at Babeș-Bolyai University in Romania * Able to provide informed consent * Willing to participate in an in-person session * Alcohol status: AUDIT-C scoring 3 or above in females, 4 or above in males
Exclusion criteria
* Students currently receiving treatment for alcohol dependence or any other substance use disorder * Students with a diagnosed severe mental health condition that may impair participation * Participation in any similar alcohol reduction program in the past 6 months. * Abstinent from alcohol consumption.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Feasibility outcome | end line (month 3) | This will be explored qualitatively asking questions about study acceptability, appropriateness, and fidelity using semi-structured interview guidelines. (Note: This is a qualitative outcome; no scoring will be done) |
| Recruitment rate | Baseline, 3 month | Number of participants recruited |
| Retention rate | Baseline, 3 month | Number of participants retained |
| Knowledge on binge drinking and adverse outcomes | Baseline, 1 month, 3 month | Change in knowledge on binge drinking and adverse outcomes. Ad hoc questions developed for this study will be used. Scoring will be done on the number questions answered correctly. |
| Attitude | Baseline, 3 month | Change in attitude to binge drinking using the Theory of Planned Behaviour tool (by Cooke, R., 2007). A 7-point Likert scale will be used on five bipolar scales (harmful-beneficial, unpleasant-pleasant, bad-good, worthless-valuable, unenjoyable-enjoyable. |
| Subjective norms | Baseline, 3 month | Change in subjective norms using the Theory of Planned Behaviour tool. A 7 point Likert scale will be used. |
| Intention to change | Baseline, 3 month | Change in intention change using the Theory of Planned Behaviour tool. A 7 point Likert scale will be used. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in frequency of binge drinking in the past four weeks | Baseline, 1 month, 3month | measured via self-report using AUDIT-C, e.g. number of binge episodes, ≥6 drinks or 60 g of pure alcohol on one occasion |
Contacts
Primary ContactAdriana Melnic, MD
Outcome results
None listed