Feasibility and acceptability of a web-intervention to prevent alcohol and cannabis-impaired driving among adolescents in driver education

TL;DR

This study explores a web-based intervention to help adolescents avoid driving impaired by alcohol or cannabis, showing it is both feasible and acceptable to its target audience.

Contribution

The study introduces webCHAT, a web-based intervention tailored for adolescents in driver education to address cannabis and alcohol-impaired driving.

Findings

88% of participants would recommend webCHAT to a friend and found it helpful for learning about impaired driving.

100% of interviewed participants reported positive impressions and would recommend the intervention.

Participants suggested using adolescent narrators in short, informal videos to improve engagement.

Abstract

Adolescents increasingly view cannabis as a substance with limited harm. Their propensity to engage in risky driving, combined with their relative driving inexperience, places adolescents at heightened risk for harm resulting from impaired driving. Driver education provides an opportunity to help prevent and reduce these risks, yet few interventions address cannabis-impaired driving, especially impairment from simultaneous use of both cannabis and alcohol.

We adapted a single-session primary care brief intervention (CHAT) for driver education programs. First, we conducted two focus groups with adolescents aged 15–17 years (n = 6; n = 5) enrolled in driver education programs. Their feedback was integrated into a prototype of an online intervention called webCHAT that focuses on preventing alcohol and cannabis-impaired driving. Next, we recruited a new sample of adolescents who user tested webCHAT (n = 8) and provided qualitative and survey feedback. We analyzed qualitative data using classic content analysis and grouped themes according to the feasibility and acceptability of webCHAT.

Participants suggested that webCHAT should have adolescent narrators in short, informal, and interactive videos. In satisfaction surveys (n = 8), 88% of participants would recommend webCHAT to a friend and 88% reported that they learned helpful skills regarding impaired driving. General acceptability was also reflected in interviews (n = 6; 100% would recommend the intervention to a friend, 100% indicated overall positive impressions, and 67% stated it was easy to use). Participants reported that it was helpful to learn about the negative effects of both cannabis and alcohol on driving behavior, voicing that webCHAT would help adolescents make more informed decisions.

Soliciting adolescent perspectives is critical when developing interventions targeting cannabis use because of increasingly permissive attitudes and perceptions of minimal risk associated with use. The current study highlights how feedback can help increase both the feasibility and acceptability of interventions.