Emotion Regulation Interventions for Alcohol-Related Sexual Aggression

July 24, 2019 updated by: Kelly Cue Davis, University of Washington

Alcohol-Related Sexual Aggression: An Emotion Regulation Intervention

Rates of sexual assault are alarmingly high, and alcohol is consistently implicated in the majority of these assaults. Despite well-intentioned prevention efforts, this pandemic continues unabated, warranting the development of novel and innovative approaches to the reduction of sexual aggression. The goal of this research is to evaluate the efficacy of two brief online emotion regulation interventions for reducing alcohol-related sexual aggression in heavy episodic drinking young men with a sexual aggression history. Previous research suggests that emotion regulation difficulties are associated with both alcohol consumption and aggressive behavior. Despite the potential prevention utility of improving sexually aggressive men's emotion regulation skills in order to reduce their alcohol-related sexual aggression, this approach has yet to be explored. Thus, this study evaluates the effects of two brief online ER interventions - cognitive restructuring and mindfulness - on men's emotion regulation during a sexual aggression-related analogue. Additionally, these effects will be evaluated during both sober and intoxicated states through a laboratory- based alcohol administration experiment.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

209

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • Washington
      • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98105
        • University of Washington

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

21 years to 30 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Single
  • Male
  • Age 21-30
  • Heterosexually active within past year
  • Heavy episodic drinker
  • Self-reported history of sexual aggression

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of alcohol problems
  • Medical condition or medications that contraindicate alcohol consumption

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Factorial Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Cognitive Restructuring & Alcohol Condition
Participants will receive a brief online training regarding the use of cognitive restructuring skills to cope with negative emotions. They will then consume an alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Participants receive didactic instruction regarding cognitive restructuring skills and then practice using these skills in hypothetical situations.
Participants consume an alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Experimental: Mindfulness & Alcohol Condition
Participants will receive a brief online training regarding the use of mindfulness skills to cope with negative emotions. They will then consume an alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Participants consume an alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Participants receive didactic instruction regarding mindfulness skills and then practice using these skills in hypothetical situations.
Experimental: Nutrition Information & Alcohol Condition
Participants will receive general information about nutrition. They will then consume an alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Participants consume an alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Experimental: Cognitive Restructuring & No Alcohol Condition
Participants will receive a brief online training regarding the use of cognitive restructuring skills to cope with negative emotions. They will then consume a non-alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Participants receive didactic instruction regarding cognitive restructuring skills and then practice using these skills in hypothetical situations.
Experimental: Mindfulness & No Alcohol Condition
Participants will receive a brief online training regarding the use of mindfulness skills to cope with negative emotions. They will then consume a non-alcoholic beverage in the lab.
Participants receive didactic instruction regarding mindfulness skills and then practice using these skills in hypothetical situations.
No Intervention: Nutrition Information & No Alcohol Condition
Participants will receive general information about nutrition. They will then consume a non-alcoholic beverage in the lab.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Sexual Aggression Intentions
Time Frame: Within one hour after receiving the intervention
Sexual Aggression Intentions Scale. Construct: Self-reported ratings of sexual aggression likelihood in a hypothetical scenario. Minimum value of 1 ("Very unlikely"). Maximum value of 7 ("Very likely"). Higher scores mean a worse outcome.
Within one hour after receiving the intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Collaborators

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

December 31, 2016

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 29, 2018

Study Completion (Actual)

June 29, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 12, 2017

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 17, 2017

First Posted (Actual)

May 18, 2017

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 26, 2019

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 24, 2019

Last Verified

July 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • STUDY00002103
  • 1R21AA023811-01A1 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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