Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials.
<h4>Background</h4>Participant reports of their own behaviour are critical for the provision and evaluation of behavioural interventions. Recent developments in brief alcohol intervention trials provide an opportunity to evaluate longstanding concerns that answering questions on behaviou...
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2011-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0023748&type=printable |
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| author | Jim McCambridge Kypros Kypri |
| author_facet | Jim McCambridge Kypros Kypri |
| author_sort | Jim McCambridge |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Background</h4>Participant reports of their own behaviour are critical for the provision and evaluation of behavioural interventions. Recent developments in brief alcohol intervention trials provide an opportunity to evaluate longstanding concerns that answering questions on behaviour as part of research assessments may inadvertently influence it and produce bias. The study objective was to evaluate the size and nature of effects observed in randomized manipulations of the effects of answering questions on drinking behaviour in brief intervention trials.<h4>Methodology/principal findings</h4>Multiple methods were used to identify primary studies. Between-group differences in total weekly alcohol consumption, quantity per drinking day and AUDIT scores were evaluated in random effects meta-analyses. Ten trials were included in this review, of which two did not provide findings for quantitative study, in which three outcomes were evaluated. Between-group differences were of the magnitude of 13.7 (-0.17 to 27.6) grams of alcohol per week (approximately 1.5 U.K. units or 1 standard U.S. drink) and 1 point (0.1 to 1.9) in AUDIT score. There was no difference in quantity per drinking day.<h4>Conclusions/significance</h4>Answering questions on drinking in brief intervention trials appears to alter subsequent self-reported behaviour. This potentially generates bias by exposing non-intervention control groups to an integral component of the intervention. The effects of brief alcohol interventions may thus have been consistently under-estimated. These findings are relevant to evaluations of any interventions to alter behaviours which involve participant self-report. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0eaf9d6c4a844cc7b0e85dc6e962a168 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2011-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj-art-0eaf9d6c4a844cc7b0e85dc6e962a1682025-08-20T03:28:06ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032011-01-01610e2374810.1371/journal.pone.0023748Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials.Jim McCambridgeKypros Kypri<h4>Background</h4>Participant reports of their own behaviour are critical for the provision and evaluation of behavioural interventions. Recent developments in brief alcohol intervention trials provide an opportunity to evaluate longstanding concerns that answering questions on behaviour as part of research assessments may inadvertently influence it and produce bias. The study objective was to evaluate the size and nature of effects observed in randomized manipulations of the effects of answering questions on drinking behaviour in brief intervention trials.<h4>Methodology/principal findings</h4>Multiple methods were used to identify primary studies. Between-group differences in total weekly alcohol consumption, quantity per drinking day and AUDIT scores were evaluated in random effects meta-analyses. Ten trials were included in this review, of which two did not provide findings for quantitative study, in which three outcomes were evaluated. Between-group differences were of the magnitude of 13.7 (-0.17 to 27.6) grams of alcohol per week (approximately 1.5 U.K. units or 1 standard U.S. drink) and 1 point (0.1 to 1.9) in AUDIT score. There was no difference in quantity per drinking day.<h4>Conclusions/significance</h4>Answering questions on drinking in brief intervention trials appears to alter subsequent self-reported behaviour. This potentially generates bias by exposing non-intervention control groups to an integral component of the intervention. The effects of brief alcohol interventions may thus have been consistently under-estimated. These findings are relevant to evaluations of any interventions to alter behaviours which involve participant self-report.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0023748&type=printable |
| spellingShingle | Jim McCambridge Kypros Kypri Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials. PLoS ONE |
| title | Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials. |
| title_full | Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials. |
| title_fullStr | Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials. |
| title_short | Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials. |
| title_sort | can simply answering research questions change behaviour systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials |
| url | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0023748&type=printable |
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