Novel Extensions of Alcohol Contingency Management in People Living With HIV

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying new ways to use Contingency Management (CM) combined with mobile health (mHealth) tools to help people living with HIV reduce their alcohol use. This study focuses on using a smartphone breathalyzer device paired with an app and a wrist-worn alcohol biosensor to encourage participants to drink less. The goal is to understand how these innovative tools can support alcohol reduction among adults living with HIV. Participants will be part of one of three groups, all involving wearing a wrist biosensor and using a smartphone breathalyzer. During the first 30 days, all will receive daily CM based on breathalyzer readings. In the next 30 days, the groups differ: one group receives encouragement without payment based on drinking, another receives weekly CM based on biosensor readings and interacts with a mobile app designed to gamify drinking reduction, and the third group receives weekly CM based on biosensor readings without the app. Brief counseling providing personalized feedback on alcohol levels and cognitive and physical functioning is also part of the interventions. During the study, participants will be monitored using biosensor and breathalyzer readings to track alcohol use and abstinence. Researchers will assess how many days participants remain abstinent from alcohol, their responses to CM strategies, and how these relate to other non-drinking outcomes. The study includes follow-up assessments up to six months to evaluate the lasting effects of the intervention. Participants' ease of use and perceived value of the contingency management strategies will also be evaluated, with safety monitored by exclusion of individuals with severe psychiatric conditions or recent intensive addiction treatment.

The Less is More Study