A randomized controlled trial of the web-based drinking diary program for problem drinking in multi workplace settings.

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of a web-based brief intervention (BI) program to record daily drinking among people with problem drinking in workplace settings.

Methods: A two-armed, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial were conducted at six workplaces in Japan. After obtaining written consent to participate in the study, workers with an Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) score of 8 or higher were randomly assigned into two groups. The participants allocated to the intervention group recorded their daily alcohol consumption for 4 weeks using the program, while those allocated to the control group received no intervention. Outcome measures included the amount of alcohol consumption in past 7 days using the Timeline Follow-Back method in the program at baseline, 8th week, and 12th week and written AUDIT score at baseline and 12th week.

Results: Hundred participants were assigned to either the intervention group (n = 50) or control group (n = 50). The results of two-way repeated measures ANOVA showed a statistically significant interaction between the group and the week factors in the two primary outcomes (number of alcohol-free days, total drinks) and secondary outcomes (AUDIT score) (p = .04, .02, and .03, respectively). The between-group effect sizes (Hedges' g; 95% CI) of the outcomes at 12th week were 0.53; 0.13-0.93 (total drinks), 0.44; 0.04-0.84 (AUDIT score), 0.43; 0.03-0.83 (number of alcohol-free days).

Conclusions: The web-based BI program for problem drinking was considered to be effective in reducing alcohol consumption and the AUDIT score in workplace settings.