NCT03335735

Smartphone-paired Breathalyzers and Loss- and Gain-framed Texts for Reducing Drinking and Driving

Pilot Trial Leveraging Smartphone-paired Breathalyzers and Loss- and Gain-framed Text Notifications for Reducing Drinking Driving

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 58 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Pennsylvania · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 21 Years – 39 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This project aims to demonstrate the feasibility of a scalable behavioral intervention using smartphone-paired breathalyzers and text message aimed at reducing drinking and driving among individuals who report heavy drinking. All participants receive a smartphone breathalyzer to provide feedback on their estimated blood alcohol level. The intervention compares loss- and gain-framed messages that make the consequences of drinking and driving more salient to standard messages not to drink and drive.

Detailed description

The overall objective of this project is to leverage smartphone-paired breathalyzers to implement cost-effective and scalable behavioral interventions to reduce risky drinking behaviors such as drinking and driving. Prospect theory proposes that messages framed in different ways can elicit different responses from individuals. Loss aversion refers to people's tendency to prefer avoiding losses to acquiring equivalent gains: it's better to not lose $5 than to find $5. People are more motivated to avoid losing something than they are to win something. Studies have found that delivering messaging framed as a loss are also effective in motivating certain behaviors. On the other hand, gain-framed messages have been shown to have a positive effect on preventative healthcare. By using automated remote monitoring, innovative loss aversion and gain-framed messaging strategies incorporating insights from behavioral economics could be more easily implemented by delivering effective messaging prior to a risky behavior taking place. The investigators hope that the use of loss aversive and/or gain-framed messaging will lead to individuals improving planning behavior around drinking, especially in regards to drinking and driving. The objective of this project is to demonstrate the feasibility of a scalable intervention using loss- gain-framed messaging to reduce drinking and driving, compare the effectiveness of each type of messaging, and to increase the use of Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) monitors as a way to plan safer strategies when drinking. The investigators' long-term objective is to secure federal funding for research that leverages insights from behavioral economics supported by smartphone technology to reduce risky drinking.

Conditions

• Alcohol Drinking
• Alcohol Intoxication
• Alcohol Impairment
• Drive
• Driving Impaired
• Driving Under the Influence
• Behavior, Drinking

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Loss-framed text message	Participants in the intervention group will receive loss-framed text messages related to drinking and driving on days during the week with a higher likelihood of alcohol consumption (Thursday-Saturday). Loss aversion refers to people's tendency to prefer avoiding losses to acquiring equivalent gains: it's better to not lose $5 than to find $5, so the content of the messages will be related to loss of personal freedom, loss of money, and loss of future employment opportunities due to Driving Under the Influence (DUI) convictions.
BEHAVIORAL	Gain-Framed text message	Participants in the intervention group will receive gain-framed text messages related to drinking and driving on days during the week with a higher likelihood of alcohol consumption (Thursday-Saturday). Gain-framed messages have been shown to have a positive effect on preventative healthcare and include content framed in a manner that the participant gains something from taking preventative action. Message content will be related to saving lives, gaining control, and making loved ones happy.

Timeline

• Start date: 2017-12-21
• Primary completion: 2018-04-09
• Completion: 2018-06-30
• First posted: 2017-11-08
• Last updated: 2018-08-08

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States