Interest and participation in a college student alcohol intervention study as a function of typical drinking.

Objective: This research explored the relationship between typical alcohol consumption and interest in participating in a brief alcohol intervention study and between typical consumption and actual participation in the study among students recruited to participate in an intervention study. We predicted a curvilinear relationship as a potential explanation for mixed findings from previous examinations of risk status and participation in alcohol intervention research. That is, we expected an inverted U-shaped relationship, with those at the lowest and highest ends of the drinking spectrum expressing the least interest in participation. We expected the same pattern to hold for likelihood of actual participation among study invitees.

Method: Self-reported typical consumption and interest in participating in an alcohol intervention study were assessed among 1,115 (59.7% female) college students. A subsample of these students (n = 377) who expressed interest and reported at least one heavy-drinking episode in the previous month were subsequently invited to participate in a brief intervention study.

Results: Drinkers were more likely than nondrinkers to report interest in participating, and there was a positive relationship between likelihood of expressing interest and typical consumption. However, the predicted quadratic relationship was evident with those at the lowest and highest ends of the drinking spectrum expressing the least interest in participation. The same pattern was also evident for actual participation among the heavy-drinking subsample invited to participate in the alcohol intervention study.

Conclusions: A nonlinear relationship may account for mixed findings regarding the relationship between risk status and participation in alcohol intervention studies. Results are interpreted in terms of psychological relevance and defensiveness. Findings highlight the need for added effort in recruiting, and/or alternative recruitment strategies for, those at highest risk.