A randomised controlled trial of inhibitory control training for the reduction of alcohol consumption in problem drinkers

Objective: We conducted a randomised controlled trial to compare the effects of three types of internet delivered Inhibitory Control Training (ICT) with each other and with an active control intervention on alcohol consumption in a community sample of problem drinkers. Methods: Two-hundred and forty-six heavy drinkers, who were motivated to reduce their alcohol consumption (mean age 41.32, 130 female) self-monitored their alcohol consumption for one week before being randomised to receive one of three variants of ICT (Associative No-Go, Associative Stop Signal, General Inhibition) or an active control. Participants then completed up to 14 ICT / control sessions on the internet over a four-week period, whilst

regularly recording their alcohol consumption. Results: There were significant reductions in alcohol consumption across all groups over the four week training period (main effect of time, F(2, 402) = 77.12, p < .01, ηp2 =.28, BF10 > 99), however there were no differences between ICT groups, or between ICT groups and the active control group (group x time interaction, F(6, 402) = 1.10, p = .36, ηp2 = .02, BF10 = 0.03). Contrary to hypotheses, there were no changes in general inhibitory control, the disinhibiting

effects of alcohol cues, or alcohol affective associations after ICT. Conclusions: In this study which attempted to translate findings from proof-of-concept laboratory studies into a viable behaviour change

intervention, we found that multiple sessions of ICT delivered over the internet did not help heavy drinkers to reduce their alcohol consumption beyond non-specific effects associated with taking part in a trial.