Decision-making in alcohol use disorder
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN13620079 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN13620079 |
| Secondary identifying numbers | Protocol / serial number: MR/W028476/1, ethics ref 066869 |
- Submission date
- 09/04/2025
- Registration date
- 10/04/2025
- Last edited
- 10/04/2025
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Overall study status
- Ongoing
- Condition category
- Mental and Behavioural Disorders
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
The overarching aim of this study is to understand how people make decisions about alcohol and other types of enjoyable, rewarding or meaningful activities, and how this differs between people with alcohol use disorder (AUD), people who had an AUD in the past but are now in recovery, and people who consume alcohol but do not have an AUD.
Who can participate?
Healthy adults aged 21 years old and over. Additional inclusion criteria, which relate to current and historical alcohol consumption and problems, apply to different subgroups of participants
What does the study involve?
Participants complete computerised decision-making tasks in which they choose between different types of images (pictures depicting alcoholic drinks, non-alcoholic drinks, and enjoyable or rewarding activities that do not involve alcohol). Participants will also complete a battery of self-report measures
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Benefits: This work will contribute to tailoring treatments and advice for people who want to reduce their alcohol consumption. People who take part in the study will also receive Prolific credits to compensate them for their time.
Risks: For people who are invited to take part in the study after initial screening, completion of the study procedures is low-risk. Participants who are in recovery from alcohol use disorder also have the option to skip blocks of the decision-making tasks that involve making decisions about pictures of alcohol, which further reduces the risk.
Other aspects of the study procedures including answering questions about current and historical alcohol consumption may cause distress for some participants.
Where is the study run from?
The University of Sheffield (UK)
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
October 2022 to August 2025
Who is funding the study?
Medical Research Council (UK)
Who is the main contact?
Prof Matt Field, matt.field@sheffield.ac.uk
Contact information
Public, Scientific, Principal Investigator
School of Psychology, University of Sheffield, 219 Portobello
Sheffield
S1 4DP
United Kingdom
 ORCID ID |
0000-0002-7790-5559 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +44 114 222 6510 |
| matt.field@sheffield.ac.uk |
Study information
| Study design | Cross-sectional observational case-control study |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Observational |
| Secondary study design | Case-control study |
| Study setting(s) | Internet/virtual |
| Study type | Other |
| Participant information sheet | Not available in web format, please use the contact details to request a patient information sheet. |
| Scientific title | Identifying the value-based decision-making profiles that distinguish people with alcohol use disorder, people in recovery from alcohol use disorder, and non-dependent alcohol consumers, using an observational case-control design |
| Study acronym | DMCCAUD |
| Study objectives | 1. Drift rates for alcohol should be highest for problem drinkers who are not seeking treatment, intermediate for low-risk drinkers, and lowest for people in recovery, whereas response thresholds for alcohol should be highest among people in recovery, intermediate for low-risk drinkers, and lowest for problem drinkers. 2. Drift rates for alcohol-free reinforcement should be lowest for problem drinkers who are not seeking treatment, intermediate for low-risk drinkers, and highest for people in recovery, whereas response thresholds for alcohol-free reinforcement should be lowest among people in recovery, intermediate for low-risk drinkers, and highest for problem drinkers. 3. Percent alcohol choice should be lowest among people in recovery, intermediate for low-risk drinkers, and highest for problem drinkers who are not seeking treatment. |
| Ethics approval(s) |
Approved 24/03/2025, Department of Psychology Research Ethics Committee (Department of Psychology, ICOSS building, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S1 4DP, United Kingdom; +44 (0)114 222 6533; psy-ethics@sheffield.ac.uk), ref: 066869 |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Alcohol use disorder |
| Intervention | Participants complete computerised decision-making tasks in which they choose between different types of images (pictures depicting alcoholic drinks, non-alcoholic drinks, and enjoyable or rewarding activities that do not involve alcohol). Participants will also complete a battery of self-report measures. |
| Intervention type | Behavioural |
| Primary outcome measure | Measured at a single timepoint: 1. Evidence accumulation rates for alcohol and alcohol-free reinforcement (inferred from value-based decision-making task) 2. Response thresholds for alcohol and alcohol-free reinforcement (inferred from value-based decision-making task) 3. Percentage alcohol choice (inferred from concurrent choice task) |
| Secondary outcome measures | Measured at a single timepoint: Self-report measures including the Brief Measure of Non-Drug Reinforcement |
| Overall study start date | 01/10/2022 |
| Completion date | 31/08/2025 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Healthy volunteer |
|---|---|
| Age group | Adult |
| Lower age limit | 21 Years |
| Sex | Both |
| Target number of participants | 132 |
| Key inclusion criteria | All participants: Access to an internet-connected computer By group: 1. Current Alcohol Use Disorder: 1.1. Endorse 6 or more symptoms on the Alcohol Symptom Checklist over the past year. 1.2. Self-reported consumption of 28 units of alcohol (or more), per week. 1.3. Score of 15 or higher on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. 2. In recovery from Alcohol Use Disorder (abstinent subgroup): 2.1. Endorse 6 or more symptoms on the Alcohol Symptom Checklist in the past (not including the past year). 2.2. Endorse 2 or fewer symptoms on the Alcohol Symptom Checklist over the past year. 2.3. Self-reported current abstinence from alcohol (as determined by first item of the AUDIT). 2.4. Answer “yes” to either of these two questions: “Do you consider yourself to be in recovery, or recovered, from an alcohol problem?” OR “Do you consider yourself to have taken care of, got over, or resolved a previous drinking problem?” 2.5. Score of 47 or higher on the Brief Assessment of Recovery Capital. 3. In recovery from Alcohol Use Disorder (non-abstinent subgroup): 3.1. Endorse 6 or more symptoms on the Alcohol Symptom Checklist in the past (not including the past year). 3.2. Endorse 2 or fewer symptoms on the Alcohol Symptom Checklist over the past year. 3.3. Self-reported consumption of 7 or fewer units of alcohol per week. 3.4. Score of 7 or lower on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. 3.5. Answer “yes” to either of these two questions: “Do you consider yourself to be in recovery, or recovered, from an alcohol problem?” OR “Do you consider yourself to have taken care of, got over, or resolved a previous drinking problem?” 3.6. Score of 47 or higher on the Brief Assessment of Recovery Capital. 4. Light drinkers: 4.1. Endorse 2 or fewer symptoms on the Alcohol Symptom Checklist over the past year and in the past (not including the past year). 4.2. Self-reported consumption of 7 or fewer units of alcohol per week. 4.3. Score of 7 or lower on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. |
| Key exclusion criteria | Answer YES to “Are you currently receiving support or treatment for your drinking?” |
| Date of first enrolment | 14/04/2025 |
| Date of final enrolment | 31/08/2025 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- England
- United Kingdom
Study participating centre
Sheffield
S10 2TN
United Kingdom
Sponsor information
University/education
Mrs Lindsay Unwin
Research Ethics & Integrity Manager
Secretary to the University Research Ethics Committee and the Research Governance Sub-Committee
Research, Partnerships and Innovation
University of Sheffield
Western Bank
Sheffield
S10 2TN
England
United Kingdom
| Phone | +44 114 222 1443 |
|---|---|
| l.v.unwin@sheffield.ac.uk | |
| Website | https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/rpi |
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/05krs5044 |
Funders
Funder type
Research council
Government organisation / National government
- Alternative name(s)
- Medical Research Council (United Kingdom), UK Medical Research Council, MRC
- Location
- United Kingdom
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | 30/09/2026 |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | Yes |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Stored in publicly available repository |
| Publication and dissemination plan | Planned publication in a peer-reviewed journal |
| IPD sharing plan | The datasets generated during and analysed during the current study will be stored in a publicly available repository. Upon publication of results from this study in a peer-reviewed journal, or before the 31st December 2025 (whichever is sooner), aggregated, anonymised data selected for long-term preservation and sharing will be deposited in the UK Data Service. The UK Data Service is openly accessible and searchable and will guarantee the preservation of these data for ten years or more. Metadata records describing these data will also be stored in ORDA (https://orda.shef.ac.uk/), the University of Sheffield research data registry and repository. The anonymised data may also be uploaded to other publicly accessible repositories such as ResearchBox or the Open Science Framework. Governance of access: Data will be made available through shared research platforms (UK Data Archive and ORDA) with the relevant permissions in place. The study team’s exclusive use of the data: The project group (including Project Partners) will have exclusive use of the data until the main research findings are published. Regulation of responsibilities of users: External users will be bound by data-sharing agreements as specified by the MRC Data Sharing Policy. These will include provisions that data are not shared with third parties without permission, and that credit is given to the research group that produced the data. Anybody who wishes to access the data from the UK Data Service will be required to sign a license agreement that permits the UKDS to perform its curatorial functions and make the data available via a Creative Commons Licence. Participants provided their informed consent for sharing their anonymised data. |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Protocol (other) | 10/04/2025 | No | No |
Editorial Notes
10/04/2025: Trial's existence confirmed by University of Sheffield.
