Working memory training and high magnitude incentives for youth cannabis use: A SMART pilot trial.

The purpose of this sequential multiple-assignment randomization treatment pilot study was to examine if (a) adding working memory training to contingency management (CM) for youth with cannabis use disorder (CUD) and (b) switching nonresponding youth to higher magnitude CM incentives boosts outcomes. In Phase 1, youth with CUD ( = 59, age = 16, male = 71%) attending an intensive outpatient program were randomly assigned to 14 weeks of CM only or CM plus working memory training (WMT). In Week 4, a Phase 2 treatment was assigned.

Impact of comprehensive treatment for first episode psychosis on substance use outcomes: A randomized controlled trial.

Lifetime co-occurring substance use disorders are common at the time of presentation for treatment of a first episode of primary psychosis and persistent substance use disorder (SUD) leads to poorer outcomes. We assessed whether the NAVIGATE program, a coordinated specialty care service that includes optional substance abuse content reduced substance use compared to usual care in 404 individuals in the Recovery After Initial Schizophrenia Episode-Early Treatment Program (RAISE-ETP) study. Participants were randomized to two years of NAVIGATE (n = 223) or usual care (n = 181) and assessed monthly for substance use.

Psychometric assessment of the marijuana adolescent problem inventory.

Cannabis is one of the most commonly used psychoactive substances among adolescents in the United States. Adolescent cannabis use has multiple consequences including academic, health, and psychiatric problems. The Marijuana Adolescent Problem Inventory (MAPI) is a 23-item scale adapted from the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index and used in the current literature to assess cannabis use problem severity.

Assessing demographic differences in decisional balance for smoking prevention and temptations to try smoking among adolescent subgroups.

Introduction: Cigarette smoking initiation remains prevalent in adolescence. Effective prevention methods are needed to dissuade this behavior. Demographic factors are identified as important risk factors in the developmental nature of smoking in adolescence.

Psychometric assessment of the processes of change scale for sun protection.

The fourteen-factor Processes of Change Scale for Sun Protection assesses behavioral and experiential strategies that underlie the process of sun protection acquisition and maintenance. Variations of this measure have been used effectively in several randomized sun protection trials, both for evaluation and as a basis for intervention. However, there are no published studies, to date, that evaluate the psychometric properties of the scale.

Abstinence based incentives plus parent training for adolescent alcohol and other substance misuse.

The purpose of this study was to conduct a randomized test of clinic- and home-based incentives plus parent training for adolescent problem alcohol use. Adolescents (N = 75) with alcohol misuse, with or without other substance misuse, were enrolled. All youth received individual Motivational Enhancement Therapy/Cognitive Behavior Therapy and weekly urine drug testing.

Identifying treatment response subgroups for adolescent cannabis use.

Introduction: Outpatient treatments for adolescent substance use demonstrate clinically meaningful reductions in substance use, but effect sizes are often low, relapse rates are high, and response to treatment is heterogeneous across participants. The present study utilized cluster analysis to identify subgroups of treatment response among adolescents from three randomized clinical trials evaluating behavioral treatments for substance use.

Methods: Analyses were performed on a sample of 194 adolescents (average age=15.

Identifying Longitudinal Patterns for Individuals and Subgroups: An Example with Adherence to Treatment for Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

To improve complex behaviors such as adherence to medical recommendations, a better understanding of behavior change over time is needed. The focus of this study was adherence to treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Adherence to the most common treatment for OSA is poor.

Reducing Sun Exposure for Prevention of Skin Cancers: Factorial Invariance and Reliability of the Self-Efficacy Scale for Sun Protection.

The Self-Efficacy Scale for Sun Protection consists of two correlated factors with three items each for Sunscreen Use and Avoidance. This study evaluated two crucial psychometric assumptions, factorial invariance and scale reliability, with a sample of adults (N = 1356) participating in a computer-tailored, population-based intervention study. A measure has factorial invariance when the model is the same across subgroups.

Validity and stability of the decisional balance for sun protection inventory.

The 8-item Decisional Balance for sun protection inventory (SunDB) assesses the relative importance of the perceived advantages (Pros) and disadvantages (Cons) of sun protective behaviors. This study examined the psychometric properties of the SunDB measure, including invariance of the measurement model, in a population-based sample of N = 1336 adults. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the theoretically based 2-factor (Pros, Cons) model, with high internal consistencies for each subscale (α ≥ .

Replicating cluster subtypes for the prevention of adolescent smoking and alcohol use.

Introduction: Substance abuse interventions tailored to the individual level have produced effective outcomes for a wide variety of behaviors. One approach to enhancing tailoring involves using cluster analysis to identify prevention subtypes that represent different attitudes about substance use. This study applied this approach to better understand tailored interventions for smoking and alcohol prevention.

Testing demographic differences for alcohol use initiation among adolescents for the decisional balance and situational temptation prevention inventories.

Alcohol use by middle school-aged students is a public health concern because of the numerous adverse social, health and psychological outcomes. Prevention programs attempt to intervene before alcohol use begins. A tailored, computer-delivered program for the prevention of alcohol use and a series of new transtheoretical model measures were developed, including decisional balance (Pros and Cons) of alcohol use and Situational Temptations to Try Alcohol.

Multiple behavior interventions to prevent substance abuse and increase energy balance behaviors in middle school students.

This study examined the effectiveness of two transtheoretical model-tailored, computer-delivered interventions designed to impact multiple substance use or energy balance behaviors in a middle school population recruited in schools. Twenty middle schools in Rhode Island including sixth grade students (=4,158) were stratified and randomly assigned by school to either a substance use prevention (decreasing smoking and alcohol) or an energy balance (increasing physical activity, fruit and vegetable consumption, and limiting TV time) intervention group in 2007. Each intervention involved five in-class contacts over a 3-year period with assessments at 12, 24, and 36 months.

Treated individuals who progress to action or maintenance for one behavior are more likely to make similar progress on another behavior: coaction results of a pooled data analysis of three trials.

Objective: This study compared, in treatment and control groups, the phenomena of coaction, which is the probability that taking effective action on one behavior is related to taking effective action on a second behavior.

Methods: Pooled data from three randomized trials of Transtheoretical Model (TTM) tailored interventions (n=9461), completed in the U.S.

Prevention of smoking in Middle School Students: psychometric assessment of the Temptations to Try Smoking Scale.

Establishment of psychometrically sound measures is critical to the development of effective interventions. The current study examined the psychometric properties, including factorial invariance, of a six item Temptations to Try Smoking Scale on a sample of middle school students. The sample of 6th grade students (N=3527) was from 20 Rhode Island middle schools and was 52% male and 84% white.

Abstract: Identifying Longitudinal Patterns of Adherence to Treatment for Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Increasing adherence to medical recommendations is crucial for improving health outcomes and reducing costs of health care. To improve adherence, we have to better understand behavior change over time. The focus of this study was adherence to treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Prevention of alcohol use in middle school students: psychometric assessment of the decisional balance inventory.

A measurement model should be equivalent across the different subgroups of a target population. The Decisional Balance Inventory for the Prevention of Alcohol Use is a 2-factor correlated model with 3 items for Pros of alcohol use and 3 items for Cons. The measure is part of a tailored intervention for middle school students.