Evaluating the acceptability of a brief online alcohol misuse prevention program among US military cadets

Abstract

BACKGROUND: As alcohol misuse remains pervasive within the military, evidence-based prevention programs that are feasible to implement and appropriately tailored to meet the needs and norms of military personnel are critically needed. Further, programs that target future military leaders, such as trainees, recruits, and cadets, may be especially impactful. eCHECKUP TO GO is an online, evidence-based brief alcohol intervention designed to reduce alcohol misuse through education and personalized feedback that may be suitable for military trainees. However, because it was developed for civilian students, efforts to adapt the content for military settings are needed.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the acceptability of a military version of eCHECKUP TO GO, tailored to include military-specific terminology and alcohol use statistics.

METHODS: US Air Force Academy cadets were recruited to participate in a single-arm, mixed methods study. Following completion of eCHECKUP TO GO, participants completed a survey that assessed satisfaction with specific aspects of the user experience, including ease of use, design, and relevance of the information and personalized feedback (range: 1 [strongly disagree] to 7 [strongly agree]). A subset of cadets also participated in a focus group to expound on the survey responses.

RESULTS: Survey participants included 22 cadets (54.5% male; mean [M] age 19.6 years, SD 1.8). Six cadets (27.2%) also participated in the focus group. Participants were satisfied with the program overall (M 5.8, SD 0.9) and gave the highest ratings to ease of use (M 6.6, SD 0.7), site design (M 6.5, SD 0.6), and site interactivity (M 6.4, SD 1.0). Items pertaining to tailoring, relevance, and amount of content specific to cadets scored lowest (M 5.8, SD 1.4; M 5.6, SD 1.4; M 5.5, SD 1.5, respectively). Most (68.2%) said they would act upon the information they were provided. Focus group participants made suggestions for improved tailoring, such as increasing content on social aspects of drinking and military-specific risks of alcohol misuse (eg, Uniform Code of Military Justice violations).

CONCLUSIONS: Although acceptability of eCHECKUP TO GO was high, continued efforts are needed to ensure the content accurately reflects the experiences of cadets. Researchers who design military health promotion interventions need to consider the varied contexts within the force and rigorously evaluate the acceptability of all content before implementation.