Marijuana Treatment Project - 3 (MTP-3)

UConn Health

Status: Completed

Conditions: Marijuana Dependence

Treatments: Behavioral: Case Management; Behavioral: Reinforcement for Abstinence; Behavioral: Reinforcement for homework completion

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT00107588

NIDA-12728-06

R01DA012728-06 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

R01-12728-06

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of this research is to improve treatment outcome for marijuana-dependent individuals. The current study builds on the findings of our prior NIDA-funded marijuana treatment study in which improved client outcomes were associated with greater treatment attendance, greater client self-efficacy, and greater use of coping skills. We will use a contingency management paradigm to provide tangible reinforcement for completing homework assignments that are designed to enhance coping skills. It is anticipated that this will result in greater homework compliance, leading to greater self-efficacy regarding one's ability to cope with high-risk situations. Improved self-efficacy will enhance the likelihood of employing coping skills in high-risk situations, thereby increasing the probability of achieving and maintaining abstinence.

Full description

Participants will receive an intervention combining one session of motivational enhancement therapy with eight sessions of cognitive-behavioral coping skills therapy (MET+CBT). A contingency management procedure will be added to this intervention, providing reinforcement for completion of homework, as verified by call-ins to an Interactive Voice Recording (IVR) system. Outcomes will be compared to an MET+CBT intervention in which reinforcement will be provided for marijuana-free urine specimens, and to a control group that receives Case Management. Recruitment of 234 marijuana-dependent participants will occur over a three-year period. They will be randomly assigned to one of the three 9-session interventions. Treatment will be individual, manualized, and provided on an outpatient basis. Pretreatment assessments will obtain baseline data; follow-up assessments at three-month intervals for one year will evaluate marijuana use outcomes, other drug or alcohol use, and psychosocial functioning. It is anticipated that the intervention in which completion of homework is reinforced will result in the best outcomes. The mechanisms by which the interventions result in behavior change will be the specific focus of attention in this study.

Enrollment: 215 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 80 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Cannabis dependence
• Willing to accept random assignment to interventions

Exclusion criteria

• Current dependence on alcohol or other drugs
• Problems that require inpatient hospitalization
• Reading ability below fifth grade level
• Lack of reliable transportation to treatment
• Excessive commuting distance

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

---

215 participants in 3 patient groups

Reinforcement for homework completion

Experimental group

Treatment:

Behavioral: Reinforcement for homework completion

Reinforcement for Abstinence

Active Comparator group

Treatment:

Behavioral: Reinforcement for Abstinence

Case Management

Active Comparator group

Treatment:

Behavioral: Case Management