Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2005 Jul;30(6):1168-82.
doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2004.12.005. Epub 2005 Jan 20.

Feedback interventions for college alcohol misuse: what, why and for whom?

Scott T Walters  1 , Clayton Neighbors
Affiliations
Review

Feedback interventions for college alcohol misuse: what, why and for whom?

Scott T Walters et al. Addict Behav. 2005 Jul.

Abstract

In response to the persistent problem of college drinking, universities have instituted a range of alcohol intervention programs for students. Motivational feedback is one intervention that has garnered support in the literature and been adopted on college campuses. This article reviews published outcome studies that have utilized feedback as a major component of an alcohol intervention for college students. Overall, 11 of the 13 reviewed studies (77%) found a significant reduction in drinking as compared to a control or comparison group. While the studies varied widely in terms of population, follow-up period, and feedback content, it appears that feedback can be effective whether delivered by mail, the Internet, or via a face-to-face motivational interview. Feedback seems to change normative perceptions of drinking and may be more effective among students who drink for social reasons. The addition of a group or individual counseling session does not appear to increase the short-term impact of the feedback.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Agostinelli G, Brown JM, Miller WR. Effects of normative feedback on consumption among heavy drinking college students. Journal of Drug Education. 1995;25(1):31–40. - PubMed
    1. Amrhein PC, Miller WR, Yahne CE, Palmer M, Fulcher L. Client commitment language during motivational interviewing predicts drug use outcomes. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 2003;71(5):862–878. - PubMed
    1. Anderson BK, Larimer ME. Problem drinking and the workplace: An individualized approach to prevention and treatment. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. 2002;16:243–251. - PubMed
    1. Baer JS, Marlatt GA, Kivlahan DR, Fromme K, Larimer M, Williams E. An experimental test of three methods of alcohol risk reduction with young adults. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 1992;60:974–979. - PubMed
    1. Baer JS, Stacy A, Larimer ML. Biases in the perception of drinking norms among college students. Journal of Studies on Alcohol. 1991;52:580–586. - PubMed

MeSH terms