Efficacy of the echeckup to go for high school seniors: Sex differences in risk factors, protective behavioral strategies, and alcohol use

Objective: The purpose of this randomized controlled study was to examine sex as a moderator of the efficacy of a brief, web-based personalized feedback intervention (eCHECKUP TO GO) on decreasing cognitive risk factors for alcohol use, increasing protective behavioral strategies, and reducing alcohol use among high school seniors. Method: Participants (n = 311) were high school senior randomized by class period to the eCHECKUP TO GO intervention or assessment-only control group. Participants completed online surveys at baseline and 30-day follow-up (91.0%; n = 283). Results: Students in the intervention group reported a significant reduction in normative perceptions of peer drinking, positive alcohol expectancies, and alcohol use relative to those in the control group. Intervention effects for perceptions of frequency of peer drunkenness and frequency of alcohol use were moderated by sex, with results favoring females. In contrast, we did not find evidence for sex as a moderator of intervention effects for normative perceptions of peer drinking frequency, sex-specific perceptions of peer heavy episodic drinking, positive alcohol expectancies, or peak drinking quantity. Further, we did not find significant intervention or moderator effects for protective behavioral strategies. Conclusions: Results of this study extend the literature by demonstrating the efficacy of the eCHECKUP TO GO for both males and females on reducing cognitive risk factors and alcohol use, although results were significant for a broader range of variables for females. Results also indicate that program content regarding normative feedback and protective behavioural strategies may need modification to be more effective for this age group. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 81, 135–143, 2020).