The Effect of AAT Training in Smokers

The University of Texas System (UT)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Tobacco Use

Treatments: Other: SHAM Training; Other: Approach Avoidance Training

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT02481752

2015-02-0023

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this research study is to investigate the effect of a brief computer task (Approach Avoidance Task) on smoking cessation. The investigators will use a novel training protocol that works to target automatic thoughts and tendencies that occur outside of conscious control. Previous research suggests that these automatic tendencies may have a direct effect on certain health behaviors- like continuing to smoke despite having previous quit attempts.

The investigators hypothesize that individuals in the AAT training condition will evidence a greater decrease in reaction times to avoid smoking-related stimuli & approach positive stimuli relative to those in the control condition. The investigators also expect that individuals in the AAT condition will exhibit superior outcomes on several quit-related variables as evidenced by an increase in motivation to quit smoking, an increase in number of days abstinent following a self-guided quit attempt, an increase in self-efficacy, and a decrease in urge to smoke compared to those in the SHAM training condition.

Enrollment: 52 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 65 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Male and female patients ages 18-65 capable of providing informed consent
• Willing and able to provide informed consent, attend all study visits, and comply with the protocol
• Daily smoker for at least 6 months
• Currently smoke an average of at least 8 cigarettes per day
• Report a motivation to quit smoking of at least 5 on a 10-point scale
• Interest in making a serious quit attempt within the next month (without professional assistance or nicotine therapy)
• Have not decreased their number of cigarettes by more than half in the last six months

Exclusion criteria

• Visual or hand-motoric impairments
• Current use of nicotine replacement therapy
• Current use of tobacco products other than cigarettes
• Insufficient command of the English language

Trial design

52 participants in 2 patient groups

AAT Training Group

Experimental group

Description:

Individuals in this condition will receive four sessions of AAT training in which they are instructed to approach (pull the joystick) images tilted to the right and avoid (push the joystick) images tilted to the left. They will be told that the training may weaken automatic cigarette-approach and strengthen automatic cigarette-avoidance. Furthermore, they will be told that the opposite effect will be true for the stimuli not related to cigarettes (i.e., the positive stimuli).

Treatment:

Other: Approach Avoidance Training

SHAM Training Group

Sham Comparator group

Description:

Individuals in this condition will receive four sessions of SHAM training in which they are instructed to approach (pull the joystick) images tilted to the right and avoid (push the joystick) images tilted to the left. They will be told that the purpose of the training is to improve control over these automatic tendencies and that following the training sessions, they will easily be able to push or pull the stimuli regardless of content.

Treatment:

Other: SHAM Training