Remote Monitoring and Contingency Management Reinforcement for Alcohol Abstinence

This pilot project proposes to monitor real-world alcohol use using a novel technology—cell
phone videorecordings in conjunction with breathalyzer recordings—and to conduct a small
randomized study of this technology for reinforcing alcohol abstinence. Individuals with
frequent alcohol use (N = 30) will be asked to carry a study cell phone plus a handheld
breathalyzer for one month. Participants will be randomized to one of two conditions: alcohol
monitoring or alcohol monitoring plus contingency management. In both conditions, research
assistants will telephone participants on their cell phone an average of 10 times per week to
request submission of a breathalyzer sample using the video monitoring function on the cell
phone. Samples will be time and date stamped, and the video containing the breathalyzer
result will be sent to study staff via the cell phone. Participants will be compensated for
each video recorded within one hour of receiving the prompt. Participants randomized to the
contingency management condition will receive the same alcohol monitoring described above,
and they will also receive reinforcement for each alcohol negative breath sample submitted
within one hour of the prompt. Data from this pilot project will be useful for (1)
determining the feasibility of assessing alcohol use in the natural environment via
breathalyzers and cell phone technology, and (2) estimating effect sizes of a CM intervention
that reinforces alcohol abstinence using breathalyzers and cell phone technology. In an
exploratory manner, we will also evaluate the reliability and validity of the video
monitoring procedure and trends toward changes in psychosocial functioning.