This R01 project will test whether an evidence-based smartphone app that is developed for heavy drinkers plus a family member partner and that offers services related to alcohol/substance use, COVID, and couple behavioral therapy will improve multiple quality of life and drinking measures in comparison to 1) the evidence-based app for heavy drinkers alone minus the couple therapy services and 2) smartphones alone.
The combination of COVID-19 and alcohol/substance use disorders exacerbates a wide range of existing problems, including the likelihood of contracting COVID and the severity of consequences, pandemic-related stresses that trigger alcohol and substance use, loss of jobs and healthcare access, and increased interpersonal violence, to name a few. The proposed study has the potential to impact outcomes for millions of American adults with alcohol and substance use problems, whether in treatment or not, at a time when effective, affordable, accessible interventions are needed more than ever to address the many serious problems likely to persist even after widespread availability of COVID vaccines.