Digital interventions for alcohol and cannabis use among young adults show potential to reduce harms

Young adults today are digital natives-naturally fluent with devices and online platforms-so some of their most effective behavioral-health interventions will likely arrive in their pockets via text, app, or other mobile medium. Now, new research shows that such interventions for alcohol and cannabis use among young adults show potential to reduce harms, according to three reports in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

Heavy drinking and cannabis use among young adults continue to exact a great cost from individuals and society, bringing such risks and consequences as fatal car accidents, assaults, and unintentional injuries. With the use of smartphones, individuals can provide large amounts of data in real-time while in their natural environment. These data collected from daily or "ecological momentary assessments" can then be used in mobile-health interventions to help support behavior change and addiction prevention-as highlighted in these studies.

Our motivation was to show how daily and ecological momentary assessment data can be used creatively with individuals reporting on their experiences up to several times a day over a certain time period."

Anne M. Fairlie, research associate professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine

Fairlie co-authored two of the three studies as well as an editorial summarizing the research.

"Placing these three research articles together makes clear that similar data can be incorporated into different types of interventions in unique ways," adds Fairlie. 

In one study, Traci M. Kennedy, of the University of Pittsburgh, and her colleagues, studied a mobile-health intervention specifically tailored toward young adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at high risk for heavy drinking. Participants received frequent check-ins via their smartphones to help identify patterns in ADHD symptoms and their drinking. Based on their responses, participants got tailored feedback to improve self-awareness and reduce alcohol intake.

In a second article, investigators led by Melissa A. Lewis of the University of Texas at Arlington describe the development of a web-based intervention-followed by text messages delivered three times a week for eight weeks-for young adults at risk for alcohol and cannabis use. Their study demonstrated that understanding people's motivations and barriers regarding substance use through their responses can help investigators tailor messages about "protective behavioral strategies" (that is, strategies to moderate use and reduce risk) to reduce harms.

The third study, by Fairlie and colleagues, examines the use of ecological momentary assessment to gather real-time data from young adults experiencing a craving to drink alcohol in response to various cues and situational factors. Participants completed multiple daily surveys over 17 days before receiving a one-time personalized feedback intervention based on their aggregated data, designed to allow them to better recognize triggers for their use.

"One clear theme across the studies was the importance of tailoring interventions, even though each used a distinct approach," says Fairlie. "Together, they illustrate multiple pathways to meaningful personalization and reinforce the idea that ecological momentary assessment is a flexible tool rather than a fixed approach. It was encouraging to see that adaptability across studies."

Ultimately, concludes Fairlie, "There are many ways to translate daily and ecological momentary assessment data into personalized intervention content, which is important for advancing innovation while still grounding the work in strong methodology."

Fairlie notes that, as this type of research progresses, we can look forward to more novel and creative digital interventions tailored to support healthier choices and behaviors among different at-risk, young-adult groups.