Challenges in the Study of Alcoholism
Jon Morgenstern
Columbia University Medical Center
Over the last two decades a number of modestly effective behavioral
and pharmacological treatments have been developed for alcohol use
disorders (AUD). However, progress has been slow and uneven. Experts
now believe that it is vital to understand the mechanisms that
underlie changes in drinking behavior in order to develop a next
generation of more effective treatments. This presentation will
provide a brief overview of the conceptual and methodological
challenges of elucidating mechanisms of behavior change in AUD. In
addition, a new approach to testing mechanisms of action of behavioral
treatments will be discussed. This approach nests intensive repeated
measures of mediators and behavior within the context of an RCT.
Challenges in modeling data to test complex causal hypotheses will be
considered.
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