Effectiveness of a Combined Web-Based and Ecological Momentary Intervention for Incoming First-Year University Students: Protocol for a 3-Arm Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND: Alcohol use among university students is common, and those who drink often choose to drink heavily (ie, 4 or more drinks per session for women or 5 or more for men). Web-based interventions (WBIs), in which students complete assessments and receive personalized feedback about their alcohol use, and ecological momentary interventions (EMIs), which use mobile devices as a method of delivering intervention information, are 2 methods that have had some success in reducing alcohol use among university students. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a combined WBI and EMI intervention to reduce alcohol use among university students. METHODS: The study is a 3-arm randomized controlled trial. Participants will be randomized into either a WBI+EMI condition, a WBI-only condition, or an assessment-only control. Our sample will consist of first-year university students, recruited through 5 residential colleges at the University of Otago, New Zealand. All participants will complete an online survey at baseline (ie, before Orientation Week); those in the WBI-only and WBI+EMI conditions will immediately receive personalized feedback (ie, the WBI), whereas participants in the assessment-only condition will receive no feedback. In addition, participants randomized into the WBI+EMI, but not those in the WBI-only or assessment-only groups, will receive 8 Orientation Week (2 per day on nights with large social events) and 6 academic year EMIs (delivered fortnightly). Participants in all conditions will complete brief surveys at the end of the first and second semester and report their weekend alcohol use fortnightly throughout each semester via ecological momentary assessments. RESULTS: The primary hypothesis is that participants in the WBI+EMI group will consume significantly fewer drinks during weekends in their first semester at university compared with WBI-only and assessment-only groups. Secondary hypotheses are that, when compared with the WBI-only and assessment-only groups, the WBI+EMI group will report consuming fewer drinks during Orientation Week, report experiencing fewer negative alcohol-related consequences after first semester, and report lower Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test-Consumption scores following their first semester. CONCLUSIONS: This study adds to a growing body of work investigating the utility of WBIs and EMIs in curbing alcohol consumption. In addition, the study will help to inform policy approaches aimed at curbing alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm in university students. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12618000015246; https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=374104&isReview=true (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6z9jRLTz6) REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER: RR1-10.2196/10164