Current Electronic Interventions Are of Limited Use for Alcohol Problems

Enthusiasm is growing for computerized interventions for a variety of behavioral health and health habit problems. “E-interventions” save time, require no or limited personnel, can be done at home, and are likely to reach many more people than face-to-face counseling. In a meta-analysis of randomized controlled studies, researchers examined the effects of e-interventions on a range of alcohol problems (excess consumption, binge drinking, alcohol use disorder) in adults (14 studies) and college students (14 studies).

Most e-interventions used no or minimal human support and were single-session. Most provided normative feedback; a smaller subset used additional techniques (e.g., goal setting, coping-skills training). E-interventions were assoc…