Individualized Assessment and Treatment for Alcoholism II

The object of this study is to develop a treatment for alcohol use disorders that is more effective than current CB treatments. Through a 2009 R-21 pilot project the investigators developed a cognitive-behavioral (CB) treatment that employed cellphone-based experience sampling (ES) to collect detailed patient data, in near real-time, and that used those data to direct treatment for each patient based on his/her pattern of drinking and specific coping actions during high-risk situations. ES data included momentary assessments of situations, thoughts and feelings antecedent to drinking episodes, and the use of coping skills. That initial study of the Individualized Assessment and Treatment Program (IATP) showed promise. The present study is intended to extend the earlier findings, to compare IATP to a more active control treatment, and to evaluate long-term outcomes.