Subsequently, in a three round expert Delphi study
(Jander et al., submitted for publication), we asked experts
in the field of alcohol use in adolescents, what
strategies could be used to successfully decrease alcohol
use in adolescents in a Web-based computer-tailored
intervention. We were interested in two aspects: strategies
in interventions that targeted adolescents directly,
and interventions that were targeted at parents with the
aim to reduce alcohol use in adolescents. Main conclusions
from this study were: adolescents should be given
the opportunity to try out different reactions and observe
the consequences of these reactions; they should
be provided with refusal skills; and they should be given
opportunities to cope with negative emotions in another
way than drinking. For the parents the main conclusions
were: parents should be advised to have clear and consistent
rules; to communicate with the adolescent about
alcohol use; and finally to monitor the friends and
whereabouts of the adolescent. Being responsive and interested
as a parent was another important feature that
the experts pointed out. In addition, we asked the experts
to come up with strategies to decrease drop-out of
Web-based CT interventions. The experts mentioned
strategies like using incentives and reminders to reduce
drop-out of adolescents, but they also made suggestions
about design and content of the intervention, such as
the use of highly relevant material and personalized
feedback, providing little text and much interaction,
using an attractive design, and language that relates
to the adolescent.
Finally, based on the results of the focus groups, previous
research and the I-Change Model we developed a
questionnaire. The I-Change Model integrates insights
from various social cognitive, social-ecological and selfregulation
theories [24,25]. The questionnaire was used
to identify the most important determinants for alcohol
use and binge drinking in adolescents (not published),
but also to investigate the influence of rules and communication
about alcohol on the child’s alcohol use.
Results from this study indicated that stricter rules
were associated with less alcohol consumption and
less binge drinking occasions (Jander et al., submitted for
publication). More importantly, the results showed that
the protective influence of rules on drinking behavior of