Caffeine withdrawal in college students: Differences by gender and beverage type

Aims: Motivational interviewing (MI) has been shown to be effective as a short-term therapeutic intervention for alcohol abuse. However, the researchon theeffectivenessofMI forotherdrugpopulations is mixed. The inconsistent findings may, in part, be due to the severity of problems experienced by these populations and the relative brevity of the 1–3 sessions typical of an MI intervention. The current study is a Stage 2 clinical trial that addresses these gaps in the literature by studying a methamphetamine (MA) dependent population and extending MI therapy to 9 sessions. Methods: Participants were randomized to (1) a 9-session intensive MI intervention (n=111) or (2) one session of standard MI with a time equivalence activity (n=106). All participants were followed at 2, 4, and 6months. Data collection included days of MA use, ASI drug, and ASI psychiatric severity. Results: Longitudinal analyses were estimated via the use of random intercept models assessing averaged treatment effects from baseline. Both conditions had significant decreases in MA use and ASI drug scores though significant differences between MI conditions were not observed. However, ASI psychiatric severity scores significantly declined for the intensive MI condition but not for the standard MI condition. Further examination of psychiatric symptoms showed significant decreases in the number of days of psychological problems compared to the standardMI condition and significant decreases in the number of days of depression for the intensive MI condition. Conclusions: This clinical trial focused on MA dependent individuals, a population that frequently presentswith serious psychiatric symptomatology at treatment entry, thereby complicating treatment efforts. Our findings demonstrate that standard MI may be equally beneficial in helpingMA clients reduce theirMA use and problem severity but intensive MI may help alleviate psychological problems not adequately addressed in shorterMI interventions. Future study should include long-term follow-up and examine the elements of MI therapy that may work as moderators to successful recovery. Financial support: NIDA R01 DA024714.