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Active, not recruitingNCT05609344Updated Mar 16, 2026

Barbershop Talk: Reducing Excessive Alcohol Consumption Among Men

An interventional study of SBIRT in Drinking Behavior, Drinking Excessive and Drinking, sponsored by University of Arkansas. Active, not recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to male participants aged 18 Years and older, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-03-16.

Sponsored by University of Arkansas · Not applicable, Interventional, and Health services research

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
611
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
Male
01

Study summary

Unhealthy drinking is considered one of the top 10 public health concerns in the United States. Not only has heavy drinking been linked to poorer overall health and the chances of getting cancer and cardiovascular diseases, but it also causes about 88,000 deaths and 2.5 million years of potential life lost each year in the U.S. Men living in rural areas tend to drink more. In Arkansas, a rural state with high rates of unhealthy drinking, men are more likely to report heavy drinking (4 or more drinks a day) and to drink more when binge drinking. Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) is an evidence-based, multilevel, integrated public health approach for early intervention and timely referral to more intensive treatment for those with substance use disorders. SBIRTs have been successfully used in primary care and emergency settings.

However, men in rural areas may lack access to evidence-based care for unhealthy drinking due to many factors, including limited healthcare providers and insurance standing. Given the increased chances of death and illness linked to harmful drinking among rural men and the serious health consequences involved, it is urgent to improve access to evidence-based care. This can be achieved by expanding services into community settings that men in rural areas are more likely to visit, such as barbershops. Thus, the goals of this proposed Hybrid Type 2 pragmatic effectiveness-implementation trial are to: 1) test the effectiveness of an evidence-based SBIRT intervention for use within barbershops (Barbershop Talk); and 2) generate the scientific evidence needed to implement SBIRTs in "real world" settings. Data from this study will further our understanding of how to reduce the chances of experiencing alcohol attributable morbidity and mortality among men living in rural areas. Data will also enhance our understanding of strategies that can improve the implementation of evidence-based care models in non-clinical settings, thereby extending the reach of evidence-based care to rural communities with high needs.

02

Conditions studied

  • Drinking Behavior
  • Drinking Excessive
  • Drinking

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03

In context

Drinking Behavior

50 studies on the registry are indexed under Drinking Behavior; 6 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 611 is above the median of 124 across 45 interventional studies indexed under Drinking Behavior.

Browse Drinking Behavior studies →

Lead sponsor

University of Arkansas is the lead sponsor of 399 studies on the registry; 38 are open to participants now.

Of its 37 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 34 (92%) have results posted.

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

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
Male
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

  • male
  • aged 18 or older
  • resident of Arkansas

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Health services research
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Crossover assignment
Masking
Double (Participant, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
611 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    SBIRT

    Each intervention barbershop, will hold screening days, where a trained community health worker will be onsite to provide Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT).

    Behavioral: SBIRT

  • Other
    Usual-care

    Six months after completion of Time 1, barbershops in the usual-care arm will receive the intervention.

    Behavioral: SBIRT

Interventions

  • BehavioralSBIRT

    Low risk individuals will receive an educational pamphlet about alcohol use and the impact on health. Moderate Risk individuals will receive a brief alcohol intervention. High risk individuals will receive the brief alcohol intervention and be referred to specialty treatment.

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Alcohol Use - total number of drinking days

    At-risk drinking behavior measured as: number of drinking days

    Time frame: Baseline

  2. Alcohol Use - total number of drinking days

    At-risk drinking behavior measured as: number of drinking days

    Time frame: 3 months

  3. Alcohol Use - total number of drinking days

    At-risk drinking behavior measured as: number of drinking days

    Time frame: 6 months

  4. Alcohol Use - number of unhealthy drinking days

    At-risk drinking behavior measured as: number of unhealthy drinking days

    Time frame: Baseline

  5. Alcohol Use - number of unhealthy drinking days

    At-risk drinking behavior measured as: number of unhealthy drinking days

    Time frame: 3 months

  6. Alcohol Use - total number of unhealthy drinking days

    At-risk drinking behavior measured as: number of unhealthy drinking days

    Time frame: 6 months

  7. Mental Health - depression

    The PHQ-9 is the depression module of the Patient Health Questionnaire (a diagnostic instrument for common mental disorders), which scores each of the 9 DSM-IV criteria as "0" (not at all) to "3" (nearly every day). The PHQ9 will be used for this outcome.

    Time frame: Baseline

  8. Mental Health - depression

    The PHQ-9 is the depression module of the Patient Health Questionnaire (a diagnostic instrument for common mental disorders), which scores each of the 9 DSM-IV criteria as "0" (not at all) to "3" (nearly every day). The PHQ9 will be used for this outcome.

    Time frame: 3 months

  9. Mental Health - depression

    The PHQ-9 is the depression module of the Patient Health Questionnaire (a diagnostic instrument for common mental disorders), which scores each of the 9 DSM-IV criteria as "0" (not at all) to "3" (nearly every day). The PHQ9 will be used for this outcome.

    Time frame: 6 months

  10. Mental Health - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

    Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL5)

    Time frame: Baseline

  11. Mental Health - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

    Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL5)

    Time frame: 3 months

  12. Mental Health - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

    Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL5)

    Time frame: 6 months

  13. Social Support

    Family, friend, and partner support (number of people in support network)

    Time frame: Baseline

  14. Social Support

    Family, friend, and partner support (number of people in support network)

    Time frame: 3 months

  15. Social Support

    Family, friend, and partner support (number of people in support network)

    Time frame: 6 months

  16. Healthcare Utilization

    Number of subjects who have utilized healthcare services

    Time frame: Baseline

  17. Healthcare Utilization

    Number of subjects who have utilized healthcare services

    Time frame: 3 months

  18. Healthcare Utilization

    Number of subjects who have utilized healthcare services

    Time frame: 6 months

07

Study locations

1 site
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Haynes T, Lovelady N, Hart C, Hill A, Wells T, Gardner A, Selig J, Cucciare M. Barbershop talk: a hybrid-2 trial examining the effectiveness of a barbershop-placed screening, brief intervention, and referral (SBIRT) intervention. BMC Public Health. 2026 Apr 1;26(1):1532. doi: 10.1186/s12889-026-26506-1. PubMed 41923034 ↗
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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Mar 16, 2026, 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
NCT05609344
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Nov 8, 2022
Start date
Jun 26, 2023
Primary completion
Jul 31, 2027 (estimated)
Completion
Jul 31, 2027 (estimated)
Last update
Mar 16, 2026

Study contacts

Tiffany F Haynes, PhD
principal investigator · University of Arkansas

Oversight

FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is active, not recruiting, as verified in Mar 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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