Table 1.
Content Ratings of Brief Motivational Intervention (BMI; n = 15) and Alcohol Education (AE; n = 16) Sessions
| Percentage of tapes |
||
|---|---|---|
| Sections of intervention | BMI | AE |
| Drinking patterns | ||
| 1. Explain purpose of session. | 100 | 100 |
| 2. Provide overview of personalized feedback form (PFF). | 100 | 0 |
| 3. Review figures describing drinking frequency/quantity. | 100 | 0 |
| 4. Reflect on/invite reactions regarding drinking patterns. | 93 | 6 |
| Drinking compared to national/local averages | ||
| 1. Compare personal drinking to national norms. | 97 | 16 |
| 2. Compare personal drinking patterns to local data. | 100 | 3 |
| 3. Define/discuss meaning of percentiles. | 100 | 97 |
| 4. Reflect on/invite reactions to percentiles. | 96 | 91 |
| Heavier drinking | ||
| 1. Define binge drinking. | 93 | 16 |
| 2. Review personal binge drinking episodes. | 93 | 6 |
| 3. Compare personal binge drinking to local data. | 100 | 0 |
| Level of intoxication | ||
| 1. Review definition of blood alcohol concentration (BAC). | 100 | 100 |
| 2. Introduce gender-specific BAC charts. | 100 | 100 |
| 3. Emphasize positive effects (<.06) and negative effects (>.06). | 100 | 100 |
| 4. Introduce tolerance. | 100 | 100 |
| 5. Introduce personal tolerance. | 77 | 28 |
| 6. Introduce “alcohol and the brain” handout. | 100 | 100 |
| 7. Review average and peak BAC from PFF. | 93 | 6 |
| 8. Reflect on/invite reactions to BAC information. | 100 | 97 |
| Drinking games | ||
| 1. Review drinking games. | 100 | 75 |
| 2. Link drinking games to BAC. | 100 | 78 |
| Biphasic effect of alcohol | ||
| 1. Introduce biphasic effect handout. | 97 | 100 |
| 2. Elaborate with | ||
| (a) Rising BACs | 97 | 100 |
| (b) Cultural myth of alcohol | 97 | 100 |
| (c) Tolerance | 90 | 100 |
| Perceptions of others’ drinking | ||
| 1. Introduce section on perceptions of alcohol use. | 93 | 6 |
| 2. Introduce norms section on PFF. | 85 | 6 |
| 3. Compare normative use with personal alcohol use. | 93 | 6 |
| IDS–42 | ||
| 1. Introduce personal IDS–42 profile. | 93 | 0 |
| Alcohol beliefs | ||
| 1. Introduce definition of expectancies. | 100 | 100 |
| 2. Emphasize that alcohol “buzz” is part ethanol (BAC), setting, and expectancies. | 100 | 94 |
| 3. Introduce personal expectancies on PFF. | 93 | 6 |
| 4. Reflect on/invite reactions regarding positive expectancies. | 97 | 13 |
| 5. Reflect on/invite reactions regarding negative expectancies. | 93 | 13 |
| 6. Comment on fact that positive expectancies are related to low BACs and negative expectancies are related to high BACs. | 97 | 87 |
| Alcohol-related consequences | ||
| 1. Introduce personal consequences of alcohol use. | 93 | 6 |
| 2. Introduce commonly reported consequences. | 71 | 82 |
| 3. Compare personal consequences with local data. | 100 | 0 |
| 4. Reflect on/invite reactions to consequences. | 87 | 44 |
| Risk reduction | ||
| 1. Use the term spectrum or continuum in the introduction of harm/risk reduction. | 90 | 9 |
| 2. Give the “spectrum of drinking consequences” handout. | 90 | 6 |
| 3. Introduce concept of harm reduction. | 90 | 6 |
| 4. Point out list of tips to reduce risks from alcohol use. | 87 | 97 |
| 5. Single out tips that are relevant to the student. | 70 | 63 |
| Other topics | ||
| 1. Introduce effects of alcohol on sleep. | 93 | 100 |
| 2. Introduce effects of alcohol on schoolwork and concentration. | 90 | 97 |
| 3. Introduce family history of alcohol use. | 83 | 100 |
| 4. Introduce the role of alcohol use in sexual assault. | 77 | 100 |
| 5. Invite reaction to the intervention as a whole. | 47 | 72 |
Note. Topics exclusive to BMI session are in italics. IDS–42 = 42-item version of the Inventory of Drinking Situations.