The purpose of this five year project is to coordinate a multi-site clinical trial of patient-treatment matching at five to nine designated collaborating centers, referred to as Clinical Research Units (CRUs). The long term objectives are to test hypotheses derived from treatment research and alcoholism theory that suggest that treatment efficacy can be improved significantly by matching patients to appropriate types of therapeutic interventions.
The specific aims of the Coordinating Center are to plan, organize and implement a common research protocol at the collaborating CRUs during three stages of the project. During the initial or planning stage of the project, the Coordinating Center will facilitate the work of the Steering Committee (to be composed of CRU Directors, NIAAA Staff, and outside consultants) as the final plans for the research design and project objectives are decided. This application proposes a coordinating procedure that will facilitate the development of consensus with respect to the most appropriate research design and study implementation plan. In the second stage of the project, all centers will pilot test the common protocol after receiving initial training from the coordinating center. A major aim of this stage is to develop procedures to ensure the specificity, distinctiveness and consistency of study treatments across sites by developing training manuals for each treatment, conducting standard training programs for therapists from all sites, and devising process rating techniques to monitor therapist skill, relationship quality, and proper implementation of study therapies. In the third phase of the project, the coordinating center will monitor implementation of the study; develop standard procedures for recording, entry, editing, and management of data from the CRUS; conduct multivariate statistical analyses; and assist the Steering Committee in the preparation of reports and scientific publications.
