Evaluating the efficacy of a web-based self-help intervention with and without chat counseling in reducing the cocaine use of problematic cocaine users: the study protocol of a pragmatic three-arm randomized controlled trial

Schaub, Michael P; Maier, Larissa J; Wenger, Andreas; Stark, Lars; Berg, Oliver; Beck, Thilo; Quednow, Boris B; Haug, Severin

doi:10.1186/s12888-015-0518-6

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Schaub, M. P., Maier, L. J., Wenger, A., Stark, L., Berg, O., Beck, T., Quednow, B. B., & Haug, S. (2015). Evaluating the efficacy of a web-based self-help intervention with and without chat counseling in reducing the cocaine use of problematic cocaine users: the study protocol of a pragmatic three-arm randomized controlled trial. BMC Psychiatry, 15(156), online. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-015-0518-6

Abstract

Background: Web-based self-help interventions that aim to reduce problematic substance use are able to reach “hidden” consumer groups in the general population who often fear stigmatization and thus avoid institutional addiction treatment. In Western European countries, including Switzerland, cocaine is the most widely used psychoactive substance after alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis. Although approximately one in six users develop serious problems of dependency, only a minority seeks help from psychiatrists or in outpatient counseling