Cited by 468Substance Abuse Treatment and OutcomesBehavioral Health and InterventionsAlcohol Consumption and Health Effects

Brief alcohol interventions for adolescents and young adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis

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Tanner-Smith, Emily E., Lipsey, Mark W.·2015·Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment

Abstract

This study reports findings from a meta-analysis summarizing the effectiveness of brief alcohol interventions for adolescents (age 11-18) and young adults (age 19-30). We identified 185 eligible study samples using a comprehensive literature search and synthesized findings using random-effects meta-analyses with robust standard errors. Overall, brief alcohol interventions led to significant reductions in alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems among adolescents (ḡ = 0.27 and ḡ = 0.19) and young adults (ḡ = 0.17 and ḡ = 0.11). These effects persisted for up to one year after intervention and did not vary across participant demographics, intervention length, or intervention format. However, certain intervention modalities (e.g., motivational interviewing) and components (e.g., decisional balance, goal-setting exercises) were associated with larger effects. We conclude that brief alcohol interventions yield beneficial effects on alcohol-related outcomes for adolescents and young adults that are modest but potentially worthwhile given their brevity and low cost.

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  • SBIRT are delivered to U.S. adolescents most frequently in pediatric primary care settings as a public health approach to preventing substance use and mental health symptoms.

    “Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) are delivered to U.S. adolescents most frequently in pediatric primary care settings as a public health approach to preventing substance use and mental health symptoms [15,16].”

    From Young Adult Substance Use and Healthcare Use Associated With Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment in Pediatric Primary Care. (2022) · cites this paper as [16]

    The Introduction describes brief interventions for young people as a potential public-health approach to preventing or reducing alcohol use. It does not say that SBIRT is delivered to U.S. adolescents most frequently in pediatric primary care, or that it prevents mental health symptoms. The Results, §3.2, instead say that most interventions in the reviewed studies took place in high schools or universities; that study distribution does not establish where SBIRT is most often delivered overall. (LLM, conf=0.88)

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  • Strategies of this type have been successful as early interventions to reduce youth alcohol and drug problems.

    “Strategies of this type have been successful as early interventions to reduce youth alcohol and drug problems (Tanner-Smith & Lipsey, 2015).”

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Research works printed but not linked: 33

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Authors
Tanner-Smith, E. E., & Lipsey, M. W.
Affiliations
Vanderbilt University (US)
Venue
Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2015-04
Volume
51
Pages
1-18
ISSN
0740-5472 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1982189611
Cited by
468
References
210
Citations by year
2026: 18 · 2025: 35 · 2024: 36 · 2023: 24 · 2022: 41 · 2021: 48 · 2020: 92 · 2019: 36 · 2018: 45 · 2017: 36 · 2016: 36 · 2015: 18 · 2014: 3
FWCI
4.14
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (R01AA020286)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pathology and Forensic Medicine › Alcohol Consumption and Health Effects
Keywords
brief alcohol intervention, adolescents, young adults, alcohol consumption, alcohol-related problems, motivational interviewing, decisional balance, goal setting, intervention effectiveness
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Alcohol Drinking, Child, Humans, Psychotherapy, Brief, Alcohol-Related Disorders, Young Adult, Motivational Interviewing

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