Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 24, 2026

The Motivation for Alcohol Reward: Predictors of Progressive-Ratio Intravenous Alcohol Self-Administration in Humans
Published on: April 28, 2022
A comparison of personalized feedback for college student drinkers delivered with and without a motivational
James G Murphy1, Trisha A Benson, Rudy E Vuchinich
1Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Box G-BH, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912, USA. James_Murphy@Brown.edu
Objective:
This study evaluated the relative efficacy of personalized drinking feedback (PDF) delivered with and without a motivational interview (MI) for college student drinkers.
Method:
Heavy-drinking college students (N = 54; 691% female) were identified from a large screening sample and randomly assigned either to receive PDF during a single MI session or to receive PDF without an MI. Of these participants, 51 (94%) completed a 6-month follow-up assessment that included measures of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems.
Results:
At 6-months postintervention, participants in both groups showed significant, small to moderate reductions in alcohol consumption, but the groups did not differ. Women showed larger reductions than men. Rates of alcohol-related problems remained relatively unchanged.
Conclusions:
The hypothesis that an MI would enhance the efficacy of PDF was not supported.
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Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping
Motivational Bias
Surveys
Sources of Self-Esteem II: Performance Feedback
Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification
Strategies of Self-Presentation II: Self-Verification
