Lessons Learned in Developing a Behavioral Economic Measure of Cannabis Use Using a Predominantly White Sample.

Behavioral economic approaches to measuring cannabis demand represent a well-validated, low-cost method of assessing risk for hazardous cannabis use. One widely used measure of cannabis demand is the Marijuana Purchase Task (MPT), which has shown good psychometric properties across multiple samples. However, preliminary data suggest that changes could improve task ecological validity and acceptability.

Demographic, substance use, and mental well-being correlates of high-intensity drinking among college students and non-college young adults: implications for intervention.

Objective: To assess demographic, substance use, and mental wellbeing factors associated with high-intensity drinking (HID; 10+ drinks on one occasion) among college- and non-college young adults, to inform prevention and intervention efforts.

Participants: A total of 1,430 young adults (819 in college and 611 not attending college) in a Midwestern state who reported trying alcohol at least once.

Methods: Participants were recruited via social media between November 2019 and February 2020 to complete a web-based survey assessing demographics, substance use, and mental well-being.

Testing the efficacy of narrator empathy, self-disclosure, gender, and use of brief motivational interviewing techniques in a brief internet-based intervention for alcohol use.

Objective: Nonspecific relational factors, such as therapist empathy, play an important role in therapy effectiveness. Building on this literature, some researchers have attempted to incorporate relational factors into electronic brief interventions (e-BIs) by using interactive narrators to guide participants through the intervention. However, few studies have examined which characteristics of these interactive narrators increase intervention acceptability and efficacy.

Emotion-Focused Psychodynamic Interview for People with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain and Childhood Adversity: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Childhood adversity and emotional conflicts are associated with the presence and severity of chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP), yet common treatments for CMP do not address such risk factors. We developed a single session, emotion-focused psychodynamic interview, based on Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy and Intensive Short-term Psychodynamic Therapy, and we tested the interview's effects on pain-related outcomes and potential psychological mediators in a randomized, controlled trial. Adults (N = 91; ages 21-70, M = 44.

Feasibility and Efficacy of a Brief Mindfulness-Based Smoking Intervention Delivered the Internet: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

A growing body of literature suggests that mindfulness-based interventions are effective in reducing smoking. However, existing mindfulness interventions are often lengthy and require extensive interaction with a therapist, making them inaccessible to a large percentage of the population. The current study addressed this issue by testing the feasibility and efficacy of a single session, web-based, mindfulness intervention for smoking cessation.

A mixed-methods investigation into the us versus them mentality in Facebook groups for chronic pain.

Objective: Social media groups for chronic pain have become increasingly popular, but the effects of these groups are largely unknown, and members may be exposed to both helpful and harmful group processes. We created a Facebook intervention for adults with chronic pain and used a mixed-methods design to evaluate the effects of group membership on social support, including examining social dynamics that may benefit or impede existing pain care.

Method: A total of 119 adults participated in either peer-led or professionally-guided Facebook groups for 1 month.

Facing Pain Together: A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Effects of Facebook Support Groups on Adults With Chronic Pain.

Despite the popularity and affordances of social media groups for people with chronic conditions, there have been few controlled tests of the effects of these groups. This randomized controlled superiority trial examined the effects of Facebook groups on pain-related outcomes and tested whether a professional-led group leads to greater effects than a support group alone. We randomly assigned 119 adults with chronic pain to one of two Facebook group conditions: a standard condition (n = 60) in which participants were instructed to offer mutual support, or a professional-led condition (n = 59) in which the investigators disseminated empirically-supported, socially-oriented psychological interventions.

The Effects of Anger on Alcohol Demand and Subjective Alcohol Craving.

Background: Anger and anger-related traits have been related to alcohol use in both cross-sectional and prospective studies. However, only a small number of studies have experimentally manipulated anger to examine whether the manipulation of anger influences alcohol craving or the relative reinforcing value of alcohol.

Methods: Participants (N = 231) recruited through Amazon's MTurk were randomly assigned to a provocation condition or a neutral condition prior to completing both the Alcohol Purchase Task and a self-report measure of alcohol craving.

Participant Satisfaction with Computer-Delivered Intervention Components and Its Relation to Alcohol Outcomes.

Few computer-delivered brief intervention (CDBI) studies have evaluated participant satisfaction with individual elements of the intervention, or whether participant satisfaction impacts intervention outcomes. This factorial trial examined whether subjective reactions to a CDBI for heavy drinking (1) varied depending on the presence versus absence of an animated narrator, a spoken voice, empathic reflections, and motivational interviewing (MI) strategies and (2) were associated with drinking outcomes at 3-month follow-up. Participants were 352 heavy drinking university students.

Using an Online Platform to Administer the Single-Session Point Subtraction Aggression Paradigm: An Initial Examination of Feasibility and Validity.

Online platforms represent a cost-effective option for data collection; however, it is unclear whether online administration of certain kinds of tasks (e.g., behavioral measures of aggression) poses validity threats.

Effects of a Sexual Health Interview among Arab American Women: An Experimental Disclosure Study.

Although sexuality is an important aspect of peoples' health and well-being, many people-professionals and patients alike-find sexuality uncomfortable to discuss. In Arab culture, certain sexual thoughts and behaviors are taboo, particularly for women, and it is not known whether an interview in which Arab American women disclose their sexuality to a health professional would be well-received and beneficial or upsetting and harmful. This experimental study tested whether engaging in a disclosure-oriented sexual health interview affects Arab American women's sexual and psychological health.

Correlates of substance use in pregnant women under community supervision after conviction for a criminal offence: The role of psychological distress.

Background: Being pregnant while under community supervision after conviction for a criminal offence can be a highly stressful experience, and pregnant women under community supervision are at an elevated risk for substance use.

Aims/hypotheses: To test for relationships between psychological distress and use of tobacco, alcohol, or marijuana during the month prior to a research assessment among pregnant women under community supervision, controlling for demographic characteristics.

Methods: Data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health were aggregated for the years 2008-2016, inclusive.

Technology-Delivered Interventions for Substance Use Among Adolescents.

Unhealthy alcohol and drug use are common among adolescents. A range of evidence-based interventions are available, but are rarely accessed by adolescents because of barriers such as cost, limited dissemination, lack of motivation to change, and logistical obstacles such as lack of transportation. Technology-delivered approaches may facilitate receipt of treatment in this vulnerable population.

Testing the efficacy of motivational strategies, empathic reflections, and lifelike features in a computerized intervention for alcohol use: A factorial trial.

Although computer delivered brief interventions (CDBIs) have been effective in reducing alcohol use, few studies have examined which components of CDBIs are most associated with drinking reductions. The current factorial trial deconstructed a brief alcohol intervention into component parts to identify main and interaction effects on drinking outcomes. Participants (N = 352) were randomly assigned to 1 of 16 possible combinations of four dichotomous (present vs.

Mobile Health Interventions: Exploring the Use of Common Relationship Factors.

The use of mobile health (mHealth) interventions has risen dramatically over the past two decades. It is important to consider mHealth intervention research within the broader therapy outcome literature. Among other key findings, this broader literature suggests that common relationship factors such as empathy, positive regard, and genuineness may play a critical role in therapy effectiveness.

Problematic Prescription Opioid Use in a Chronic Pain Treatment Facility: The Role of Emotional Processes.

Background: Factors associated with prescription opioid misuse in a chronic pain treatment population are limited, and increasing our understanding of associated factors could lead to improved targeting of prevention and intervention efforts.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate factors associated with problematic prescription opioid use in patients with chronic pain, and whether assessing emotional processes - alexithymia, ambivalence over emotional expression (AEQ), and emotional approach coping - improves understanding of problematic prescription opioid use beyond traditional risk factors.

Methods: Participants were 100 patients with chronic pain (mean age = 47.

Child Maltreatment and Physical Victimization: Does Heavy Drinking Mediate the Relationship?

Past studies examining the child maltreatment (CM)/victimization pathway have been limited by their focus on sexual victimization, narrow windows of assessment, and failure to examine gender differences. In the current study, we sought to examine (1) the impact of CM on physical victimization (PV) trajectories from adolescence to young adulthood and (2) the extent to which heavy drinking mediated the relationship between CM and later PV. Using three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we found that CM was associated with a 69% greater odds of later PV for both genders, after the inclusion of control variables, and that the risk continued into adulthood.

Effects of narrator empathy in a computer delivered brief intervention for alcohol use.

Computer-delivered, brief interventions (CDBIs) have been an increasingly popular way to treat alcohol use disorders; however, very few studies have examined which characteristics of CDBIs maximize intervention effectiveness. The literature has consistently demonstrated that therapist empathy is associated with reduced substance use in in-person therapy; however, it is unclear whether this principle applies to CDBIs. Therefore, the study aimed to examine whether the presence of an empathic narrator increased intentions to reduce heavy drinking in a CDBI.

Toward Enhancing Treatment for Pregnant Smokers: Laying the Groundwork for the Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Approaches.

Introduction: Although effective treatments exist, most women who smoke during pregnancy neither seek nor receive treatment. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments (eg, mindfulness, yoga, and acupuncture) may be attractive, low-cost options that can be used to assist a large proportion of pregnant women with smoking cessation.

Methods: This study examined participant characteristics and treatment utilization among pregnant smokers in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) and the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) in order to explore the prevalence and predictors of CAM use for any purpose within this population.

Different forms of spirituality and heavy episodic drinking among college students.

Objective: The current study examined prospective, bidirectional relationships between 3 measures of spirituality (Daily Spiritual Experiences, Positive Religious Coping, and Negative Religious Coping) and frequency of heavy episodic drinking.

Participants: Three hundred ninety-one students attending a large, public university in the Midwest.

Methods: Electronic surveys assessing predictors of college alcohol use were sent to participants in the winter of their freshman and sophomore years.

The efficacy of paroxetine and placebo in treating anxiety and depression: a meta-analysis of change on the Hamilton Rating Scales.

Background: Previous meta-analyses of published and unpublished trials indicate that antidepressants provide modest benefits compared to placebo in the treatment of depression; some have argued that these benefits are not clinically significant. However, these meta-analyses were based only on trials submitted for the initial FDA approval of the medication and were limited to those aimed at treating depression. Here, for the first time, we assess the efficacy of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) in the treatment of both anxiety and depression, using a complete data set of all published and unpublished trials sponsored by the manufacturer.

Childhood sexual abuse, distress, and alcohol-related problems: Moderation by drinking to cope.

Previous studies have found relationships between childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and problem alcohol use. However, few studies have explored mechanisms that may explain this relationship. The present study examined whether (a) distress mediated the relationship between CSA and both heavy drinking and alcohol consequences, (b) coping motives for drinking moderated the paths between distress and both heavy drinking and alcohol consequences, and (c) these relationships remained significant after controlling for other forms of abuse/trauma.

Differential relationships between religiosity, cigarette smoking, and waterpipe use: implications for college student health.

Objective: Using a framework informed by problem behavior theory, the authors examined differential relationships between religiosity and the frequency of cigarette and waterpipe tobacco smoking.

Participants: Six hundred fourteen individuals beginning their freshman year at a large, public, midwestern university.

Methods: Paper-and-pencil surveys were administered to students who attended freshman orientation.

Perceived racism and alcohol consequences among African American and Caucasian college students.

Few studies have assessed relationships between perceived racism, racism-related stress, and alcohol problems. The current study examined these relationships within the context of tension reduction models of alcohol consumption. Participants were 94 African American and 189 Caucasian college freshmen who completed an online survey assessing perceived racism, alcohol consequences, alcohol consumption, negative affect, and deviant behavior.