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CompletedNCT01891656MAPITUpdated Apr 13, 2016

Motivational Assessment Program to Initiate Treatment

An interventional study of Motivational Interviewing and Motivational Computer in Substance-Related Disorders, sponsored by University of North Texas Health Science Center. Completed at 2 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2016-04-13.

Sponsored by University of North Texas Health Science Center · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
380
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Substance abuse treatment in the criminal justice system can reduce drug use and related criminal behavior. Although drug and alcohol treatment are common mandates in criminal justice programs, only a minority of clients actually initiate treatment. This proposal will compare two intervention formats that target motivation to initiate and engage in treatment among a group of probationers who have drug or alcohol treatment conditions. Six hundred drug and alcohol offenders in two probation sites (Baltimore, MD and Dallas, TX) will be randomized to receive: 1) an in-person motivational interviewing session (MI), 2) a motivational computer program (MC), or 3) supervision intake and monitoring as usual (SAU). The MI condition will be structured along the lines of the "Check-Up" format which consists of an assessment and personalized feedback delivered in an MI style; the content of the MC condition will be drawn from previous literature on effective motivational computer programs. Both interventions will be delivered at the start of the probation process, with follow-up assessments at 2 and 6 months. Primary outcomes include engagement and participation in substance abuse treatment; secondary outcomes include drug and alcohol use, probation progress, criminal behavior, and HIV testing and care. This project will be the first to develop and test two interventions for encouraging criminal justice clients to follow through with treatment recommendations, with the goal of increasing treatment initiation, and reducing subsequent drug use and criminal behavior. It also contributes to ongoing partnerships with two large probation agencies-the Dallas County Supervision and Corrections Department and the Maryland Division of Parole and Probation.

Read the detailed description

Specific Aims

  • Develop two intervention formats (Motivational Interviewing (MI) and Motivational Computer (MC)) for increasing motivation to initiate and engage in substance abuse treatment and/or HIV / AIDS testing and, if appropriate, HIV care.
  • Test the efficacy of MI and MC on treatment initiation and participation, substance abuse, HIV testing/care, and recidivism, as compared to Supervision As Usual (SAU);
  • Evaluate offender characteristics (e.g., risk level, gender, ethnicity, motivation) as potential moderators of the intervention effect; and,
  • Assess the relative cost and cost-effectiveness of MI and MC on substance abuse treatment and/or linkage to or participation in HIV/AIDS care, supervision outcomes, recidivism, and substance abuse.
02

Conditions studied

  • Substance-Related Disorders

Keywords

  • Motivational Interviewing
  • Internet
  • Treatment
  • Substance-Related Disorders
  • Criminal Justice
03

In context

Substance-Related Disorders

2,181 studies on the registry are indexed under Substance-Related Disorders; 399 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 380 is above the median of 108 across 1,770 interventional studies indexed under Substance-Related Disorders.

Browse Substance-Related Disorders studies →

Lead sponsor

University of North Texas Health Science Center is the lead sponsor of 31 studies on the registry; 3 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • >=18 years old
  • Drug or Alcohol use in the last 90 days

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • \<18 years old
  • Cannot speak English
  • Already participate in a substance abuse treatment
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
380 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Motivational Interviewing

    Participants randomized to the MI group will receive a single 60-minute MI session focused on motivation to initiate and engage in treatment. The MI session will be organized around the "Check-Up" format, with additional planning components as desired by the client.

    Behavioral: Motivational Interviewing

  • No intervention
    Supervision As Usual

    Participants randomized to the SAU group will receive the standard agency intake process as well as baseline and follow-up research interviews, but will not receive any additional intervention as part of the study. They will be referred to a treatment program as per the normal routine.

  • Experimental
    Motivational Computer

    Participants randomized to the MC group will complete a 60 minute computer intervention focused on motivation to initiate and engage in treatment. The program will be self-guided, interactive, and to the extent possible, will mirror the features of MI session. The MC program will have two main components: a motivation component and a planning component.

    Behavioral: Motivational Computer

Interventions

  • BehavioralMotivational Interviewing

    MI is a "client centered, directive style of interacting with a person to help explore and resolve ambivalence about change" (Miller \& Rollnick, 2002). MI borrows from Client-Centered Counseling in its emphasis on empathy, optimism, and respect for client choice (Rogers, 1961). MI also draws from Self-Perception Theory, which says that a person becomes more or less committed to an action based on the verbal stance he or she takes (Bem, 1972). The effects of MI tend to be in the small-to-medium range when compared to no treatment, and nonsignificant when compared to more extensive treatment.

    Also known as: Motivational Enhancement Therapy

  • BehavioralMotivational Computer

    The growing use of technology has led to the development of automated interventions for behavior change, including some that target drug and alcohol use (Elliott, et al, 2008; Lustria, et al, 2009; Revere \& Dunbar, 2001; Walters, et al, 2006) and treatment interest (Lieberman \& Massey, 2008). As discussed by Hester \& Miller (2006), automated interventions have several potential advantages over face-to-face interventions: (I) They require little or no staff contact, which may increase cost-effectiveness; (2) they can allow for automatic data collection and follow-up; and (3) they can be disseminated with little loss of fidelity.

    Also known as: Web-Based Interventions

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Treatment Progress

    Treatment progress assesses initiation, engagement and retention at 2 and 6 months via telephone. In-person visits are assessed at baseline and during a 6 month visit.

    Time frame: 6 months

Secondary outcomes

  1. Drug and Alcohol Use

    Drug and alcohol use is a secondary outcome measured at baseline and 6 months during an in-person interview. In addition, this outcome is measured at 2 via telephone.

    Time frame: 6 months

  2. Probation Progress

    Probation progress is measured at baseline and 6 months via in-person interview. In addition, this outcome is measured at 2 via a telephone interview.

    Time frame: 6 months

  3. Criminal Behavior

    Criminal Behavior is measured during in-person interviews at baseline and 6 months. In addition, this outcome is measured at 2 months via telephone.

    Time frame: 6 months

07

Study locations

2 sites
  • University of North Texas Health Science Center
    Fort Worth, Texas 76107, United States
  • George Mason University
    Fairfax, Virginia 22030, United States
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Walters ST, Ondersma SJ, Ingersoll KS, Rodriguez M, Lerch J, Rossheim ME, Taxman FS. MAPIT: development of a web-based intervention targeting substance abuse treatment in the criminal justice system. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2014 Jan;46(1):60-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jsat.2013.07.003. Epub 2013 Aug 16. PubMed 23954392 ↗
  • Reingle Gonzalez JM, Walters ST, Lerch J, Taxman FS. The Relationship Between Drug Use, Drug-related Arrests, and Chronic Pain Among Adults on Probation. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2015 Jun;53:33-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jsat.2014.12.005. Epub 2014 Dec 30. PubMed 25595302 ↗
  • Rodriguez M, Walters ST, Houck JM, Ortiz JA, Taxman FS. The language of change among criminal justice clients: Counselor language, client language, and client substance use outcomes. J Clin Psychol. 2018 Apr;74(4):626-636. doi: 10.1002/jclp.22534. Epub 2017 Sep 22. PubMed 28940435 ↗
  • Lerch J, Walters ST, Tang L, Taxman FS. Effectiveness of a computerized motivational intervention on treatment initiation and substance use: Results from a randomized trial. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2017 Sep;80:59-66. doi: 10.1016/j.jsat.2017.07.002. Epub 2017 Jul 6. PubMed 28755774 ↗
  • Spohr SA, Taxman FS, Rodriguez M, Walters ST. Motivational Interviewing Fidelity in a Community Corrections Setting: Treatment Initiation and Subsequent Drug Use. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2016 Jun;65:20-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jsat.2015.07.012. Epub 2015 Jul 29. PubMed 26365536 ↗
  • Taxman FS, Walters ST, Sloas LB, Lerch J, Rodriguez M. Motivational tools to improve probationer treatment outcomes. Contemp Clin Trials. 2015 Jul;43:120-8. doi: 10.1016/j.cct.2015.05.016. Epub 2015 May 22. PubMed 26009023 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
Not marked actual or estimatedDates not marked actual or estimated

The record gives a start of Jun 2012, a primary completion of Jun 2015 and a completion of Feb 2016. It does not say whether these dates are actual or estimated.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Oct 18, 2011
First posted
Jul 3, 2013
Start
Jun 2012
Primary completionActual
Jun 2015
CompletionActual
Feb 2016
Last update
Apr 13, 2016
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Apr 13, 2016, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT01891656
Lead sponsor
University of North Texas Health Science Center
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Jul 3, 2013
Start date
Jun 2012
Primary completion
Jun 2015
Completion
Feb 2016
Last update
Apr 13, 2016

Study contacts

Scott T Walters, PhD
principal investigator · UNT Health Science Center

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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