Text Message Intervention for Alcohol Consumption

(ASPIRE Trial)

Overseen By Brian Suffoletto, MD, MS

Age: 18 - 65

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: Stanford University

Disqualifiers: College enrollment, Military, Pregnancy, Prisoner, Substance treatment

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: Unknown

Duration: 12 months

300 Participants Needed

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial tests whether a text message program, called ASPIRE, can help young adults reduce their drinking by addressing thoughts, behaviors, and social influences. Participants will receive messages designed to change their perceptions and interactions with alcohol and peers. The trial compares two different text message programs and assesses their effectiveness over time. It seeks individuals aged 18-25 in the U.S. who wish to reduce their drinking and have experienced a few heavy drinking days in the past month. As an unphased trial, this study offers a unique opportunity to contribute to innovative research that could lead to new strategies for reducing alcohol consumption.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications. However, it does exclude those who are currently in treatment for alcohol or substance use disorder.

What prior data suggests that this text message intervention is safe for young adults?

Research on text message programs for alcohol use, such as ASPIRE, shows they are generally safe. Studies often examine the ease and acceptability of these programs for participants. No serious safety issues have been reported. The goal is to change behaviors and thoughts that lead to drinking by sending messages to participants' phones. This non-invasive method does not involve drugs or surgeries, eliminating direct physical risks. Participants typically manage the program well and often express satisfaction with how the messages assist in managing their drinking habits. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Researchers are excited about the text message interventions for alcohol consumption because they harness the power of digital communication to address drinking habits. Unlike traditional face-to-face therapy or medication, these interventions are delivered directly to individuals' phones, offering a convenient and accessible way to promote healthier behaviors. One version of the treatment also uniquely emphasizes peer influences, alongside cognitive and behavioral strategies, potentially making it more effective by tapping into social dynamics that often play a significant role in drinking behavior. By leveraging technology and social factors, these interventions could offer a novel, scalable solution for reducing alcohol consumption.

What evidence suggests that this text message intervention is effective for reducing alcohol consumption?

Research has shown that the ASPIRE text message program can help people reduce alcohol consumption. In this trial, participants will join one of two treatment arms. One arm includes a text message alcohol intervention that targets cognitive, behavioral, and peer influences, while the other focuses on cognitive and behavioral influences alone. In a 12-week study with 152 participants, daily text messages significantly reduced both overall drinking and the number of heavy drinking days. The ASPIRE method encourages collaboration with close friends to achieve drinking goals. This approach addresses both thinking and behavior, making it a promising option for young adults who want to cut down on alcohol. ^{1 2 3 4 6}

Who Is on the Research Team?

Brian Suffoletto, MD

Principal Investigator

Stanford University

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

The ASPIRE trial is for young adults aged 18-25 in the U.S. who want to cut down on drinking and own a mobile phone with SMS. They must read English and have had days in the past month with heavy drinking (4+ drinks for women, 5+ for men).

Inclusion Criteria

I live in the U.S.

I can read and understand English.

I own a mobile phone capable of sending and receiving texts.

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Treatment

Participants receive text message interventions designed to address cognitive, behavioral, and peer influences on drinking behaviors

12 months

Ongoing virtual engagement through text messages

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for safety and effectiveness after treatment

3 months

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• ASPIRE

Trial Overview ASPIRE tests a text message intervention aimed at reducing alcohol consumption by addressing how thinking, behavior, and peers influence drinking. Participants are randomly assigned to ASPIRE or a control group focusing only on cognitive and behavioral aspects.

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: A text message alcohol intervention focused on cognitive, behavioral, and peer influences Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Group II: A text message alcohol intervention focused on cognitive and behavioral influences Active Control 1 Intervention

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

Stanford University

Lead Sponsor

Trials

2,527

Recruited

17,430,000+

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

Collaborator

Trials

865

Recruited

1,091,000+

Published Research Related to This Trial

The smartphone-based intervention aimed at reducing risky drinking in young adults did not significantly decrease risky drinking behaviors or related harms, based on a pilot study involving 45 participants.

However, the intervention successfully increased the use of protective behavioral strategies among users, and participants rated the app as highly usable, indicating potential for future improvements in harm-minimization approaches.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Delivering Personalized Protective Behavioral Drinking Strategies via a Smartphone Intervention: a Pilot Study. O'Donnell, R., Richardson, B., Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, M., et al.[2020]

An automated text messaging system was tested with 39 adolescents and young adults in a pilot study, showing high feasibility with 63% enrollment and 89.7% retention after baseline assessments.

Participants reported a positive experience with the text messages, especially those that were supportive and empowering, indicating that text messaging can effectively complement substance use interventions.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Text message reminders as an adjunct to a substance use intervention for adolescents and young adults: Pilot feasibility and acceptability findings. Schwebel, FJ., Larimer, ME.[2022]

In a study involving 26 patients with alcohol use disorder and depression, 75% reported that supportive text messages helped remind them to stay abstinent from alcohol.

83% of participants felt that these text messages were useful for improving their mental health, motivating their recovery, and preventing relapse.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Perception of patients with alcohol use disorder and comorbid depression about the usefulness of supportive text messages. Agyapong, VI., Milnes, J., McLoughlin, DM., et al.[2015]

The TRAC2 text message intervention effectively engaged nontreatment-seeking young adults, with an average response rate of 82% to ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) during the first 4-week block, indicating strong participant involvement.

Participants showed high commitment to drinking limit goals (96% commitment rate) and achieved their goals 89% of the time, suggesting that the intervention successfully supported self-regulation and reduced alcohol consumption over a 3-month follow-up period.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A Text Message Intervention with Adaptive Goal Support to Reduce Alcohol Consumption Among Non-Treatment-Seeking Young Adults: Non-Randomized Clinical Trial with Voluntary Length of Enrollment. Suffoletto, B., Chung, T., Muench, F., et al.[2020]

A 1-year SMS intervention significantly reduced heavy drinking among 462 patients with alcohol dependence after detoxification, with 22.2% in the intervention group compared to 32.3% in the treatment as usual group.

The SMS intervention showed an odds ratio of 1.68 for reducing heavy drinking, indicating it was effective in promoting better drinking outcomes compared to standard treatment alone.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Effect of a 1-year short message service in detoxified alcohol-dependent patients: a multi-center, open-label randomized controlled trial. Lucht, M., Quellmalz, A., Mende, M., et al.[2021]

A meta-analysis of studies published between 2010 and 2018 found that mobile phone text messaging interventions were not effective in reducing alcohol intake among youth and younger adults.

The analysis included randomized control trials and pre-post studies that focused on problem drinking criteria set by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The Effectiveness of Mobile Phone-Based Text Messaging to Intervene with Problem Drinking in Youth and Younger Adult Population: A Meta-Analysis. Bastola, MM., Locatis, C., Maisiak, R., et al.[2021]

An 8-week SMS-based intervention for alcohol-dependent patients after detoxification showed good feasibility and acceptability, with 57.14% of participants responding to at least half of the prompts.

While 55.7% of patients in the SMS group achieved low-risk alcohol consumption compared to 40% in the treatment as usual group, the difference was not statistically significant, indicating the need for further research with larger sample sizes.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A surveillance tool using mobile phone short message service to reduce alcohol consumption among alcohol-dependent patients. Lucht, MJ., Hoffman, L., Haug, S., et al.[2017]

In a study of 54 participants with depression and alcohol use disorder, those receiving supportive text messages showed significantly lower depression scores after three months compared to the control group, indicating improved mood.

While the text message group also tended to have longer periods of abstinence from alcohol, the difference was not statistically significant, suggesting that supportive messaging may help but further research is needed.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Supportive text messaging for depression and comorbid alcohol use disorder: single-blind randomised trial. Agyapong, VI., Ahern, S., McLoughlin, DM., et al.[2022]

A study involving 59 patients with alcohol use disorder showed that supportive text messaging after treatment can significantly extend the time before a patient has their first drink, with the intervention group averaging about 60 days compared to 26 days for the control group.

The text messaging intervention also demonstrated small to moderate improvements in cumulative abstinence duration and alcohol consumption, indicating it could be a valuable follow-up care tool for patients after residential treatment.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Randomized controlled pilot trial of supportive text messaging for alcohol use disorder patients. Agyapong, VIO., Juhás, M., Mrklas, K., et al.[2019]

The text message-based aftercare program for alcohol outpatients was well accepted, with participants responding to 88.1% of prompts, indicating high engagement with the intervention.

At follow-up, the program showed a trend towards reduced at-risk alcohol use (28.6% in the intervention group vs. 41.7% in the control group), suggesting potential effectiveness that warrants further testing in a larger trial.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A pilot study on the feasibility and acceptability of a text message-based aftercare treatment programme among alcohol outpatients. Haug, S., Lucht, MJ., John, U., et al.[2015]

In a 12-week pilot study with 152 participants, daily remote text messaging interventions significantly reduced alcohol consumption and heavy drinking days compared to weekly self-tracking messages, indicating their potential as effective stand-alone tools for problem drinkers.

Among the different types of messages tested, tailored adaptive texts showed the largest effect sizes in reducing drinking frequency and quantity, suggesting that personalized messaging may enhance the effectiveness of alcohol reduction strategies.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial of Different Mobile Messaging Interventions for Problem Drinking Compared to Weekly Drink Tracking. Muench, F., van Stolk-Cooke, K., Kuerbis, A., et al.[2022]

Citations

1. clinicaltrials.gov clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06617702

Study Details | NCT06617702 | Accountability Support ... Young adults who are contemplating reducing their drinking will be recruited from a national sample and randomized to ASPIRE versus a text message intervention ...

2. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38552400/

A remote pilot randomized trial in non-collegiate young adults All groups had high text response rates but intervention usability was sub-optimal. Follow-up rates were 87% at 6-weeks and 79% at 12-weeks.

3. sciencedirect.com sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306460324000698

A remote pilot randomized trial in non-collegiate young adults We developed ASPIRE, a text message intervention focused on coaching individuals to engage with close peers to assist them in meeting drinking limit goals.

4. withpower.com withpower.com/trial/phase-alcohol-drinking-2025-1fbdd

Text Message Intervention for Alcohol Consumption In a 12-week pilot study with 152 participants, daily remote text messaging interventions significantly reduced alcohol consumption and heavy drinking days ...

5. reporter.nih.gov reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8752343

A Text-Message Intervention to Reduce Alcohol Use ... Additional outcomes will include total drinks per month, alcohol-related consequences, and intervention satisfaction as measured through web-based follow-up ...

6. bmjopen.bmj.com bmjopen.bmj.com/content/12/8/e062735

Online randomised factorial trial of electronic Screening ... This study will test the efficacy of single-session technology-delivered SBI (electronic SBI) for alcohol use in pregnancy