User experience, enhancement, and evaluation of an alcohol mobile intervention for military veterans

About This Grant

Risky alcohol use is widespread among United States military service members and veterans with over half of veterans reporting past-month alcohol use and an estimated 1.7 million veterans endorsing criteria for current alcohol use disorder (AUD). Veterans also experience complex biopsychosocial complications including co-occurring mental health diagnoses such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, chronic pain, and diabetes which all complicate AUD treatment and create added risks for alcohol use compared to veterans without AUD. Further, the majority of veterans who acknowledge a problem with their alcohol use do not seek formal treatment, largely because they do not want to abstain from alcohol. Providing accessible treatment options that address whole-person recovery from complex biopsychosocial conditions and that do not require abstinence are critical for veterans. These needs are highlighted by recent strategic plans and notice of special interests posted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism that call for increased studies of interventions that target whole-person outcomes, especially among military and veteran populations. One potential way to address these needs and calls for funding priorities is to leverage existing interventions and technology to reach all veteran communities nationwide, including health professional shortage areas. The goal of the present study is to enhance an existing mobile app called VetChange that currently targets alcohol use reduction and abstinence goals and PTSD symptom improvement. The current version of VetChange is based on empirically-supported treatments and previous iterations of the intervention have demonstrated preliminary efficacy. The enhancements proposed may extend the reach of VetChange to veterans who want to decrease alcohol-related harms, not solely decrease their alcohol use alone. Further, User Experience methodology has not yet been performed with VetChange and is a critical next step towards app development and refinement. In the second phase of the proposed study, a randomized clinical trial will compare the enhanced VetChange mobile app to a control condition app. The ultimate goal of the present study is to capitalize on existing resources to further the field’s offering of accessible and effective treatments to US veterans that require accessible and flexible treatment options. If effective, this project has the potential to reach a broader population of veterans who engage in harmful alcohol use, compared to both in-person interventions and existing apps that focus on abstinence or drinking reductions, in a way that is culturally appropriate to veterans and their complex biopsychosocial, whole-person needs.