Tse, N., Siu, A., Tsang, S., & Jensen, M. P. (2024). Group motivational interviewing for adolescents at risk of internet gaming disorder: A mixed-methods preliminary evaluation. Clinical Social Work Journal, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10615-024-00968-5
Impact Factor: 2.7 (2023)
Journal Rank: JCR - Q1: Health (Social Science); Q1: (Social Work) (SSCI)
CiteScore -
Abstract
Internet gaming disorder (IGD) among adolescents is a widespread public health issue, with far-reaching negative impacts on adolescents’ health and relationships with their families. This study evaluated the preliminary outcomes of a two-session Group Motivational Interviewing (GMI) programme designed to address the risk of IGD among students across primary, secondary, and university levels. Conducted in-person during short periods of time when schools were open during the COVID pandemic, the programme used experiential activities and guided discussions to (1) facilitate participants’ reflection on time management, life goals, and gaming behaviours, and (2) cultivate readiness for change. Fifty-five students, aged 9 to 21, participated in the study, and outcomes were evaluated using a mixed-methods approach. Quantitative data tracked changes in severity of IGD symptoms, motivation for change, and time consumption on gaming, studying, and outdoor activities. The qualitative component involved analysing goal-setting worksheets to understand participants’ motivations and potential barriers to change. Intervention fidelity was monitored using a modified checklist from the Assessment of Motivational Interviewing Groups– Observer Scale. Results revealed significant pre- to post-treatment reductions in gaming time and enhancements in motivation for change, but there was no significant change in the risks of IGD from baseline to post-treatment or three-month follow-up. Changes in the Contemplation Ladder indicated a sustained increase in motivation for change over the three-month follow-up. Furthermore, qualitative analysis revealed academic study as a crucial factor, serving both as a goal (improving academic results) and a barrier (alleviating academic stress) for changes in gaming behaviour. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that the two-session GMI programme is a feasible and potentially effective approach to engage students in reflecting on their gaming habits and promoting readiness for change. These preliminary results also provide support for conducting a full clinical trial on the effectiveness of the programme.
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Wang, H., Tse, N., Ip, T. K. M., Mo, P. K., Yu, Y., & Lau, J. T. (2024). Validation of the psychoactive substance refusal Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSRSEQ) in adolescent case-clients of social workers in Hong Kong. Addictive Behaviors, 108093. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2024.108093
Impact Factor: 4.4 (2023)
Journal Rank: JCR - Q1: Clinical Psychology (SSCI)
CiteScore - 8.4
Highlights
This study validated the Psychoactive Substance Refusal Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSRSEQ) in Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong.
The psychometric properties of the 1-factor structure performed better than the original 3-factor one of PSRSEQ.
The validated PSRSEQ would facilitate future research and interventions on refusal self-efficacy for psychoactive substance use.
Abstract
Background
Self-efficacy is a key concept in various behavioral theories. Refusal self-efficacy is important in understanding issues related to psychoactive substance use. To facilitate related research, this study translated and validated the Chinese version of the 14-item Psychoactive Substance Refusal Self-efficacy Questionnaire (PSRSEQ) among adolescents. There is a debate about whether such a refusal self-efficacy scale should be unidimensional or multidimensional.
Methods
A survey was conducted among 601 adolescent case-clients of social workers in Hong Kong from July 2021 to June 2022. Various psychometric properties were examined.
Results
The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported the original 3-factor structure of the PSRSEQ (emotional relief, opportunistic, and social facilitation refusal self-efficacy), which showed satisfactory psychometric properties (internal consistency, convergent validity in terms of significant negative correlations with the intention of psychoactive substance use in the next year and psychoactive substance use behavior in the past six months, and the absence of floor effect) but ceiling effect was obvious. Notably, unacceptable discriminant validity of one subscale and strong correlations among the three subscales were observed. In another set of analyses using two split-half subsamples, the exploratory factor analysis identified a 1-factor 14-item structure, which was confirmed by CFA and showed satisfactory psychometric properties.
Conclusions
The 1-factor PSRSEQ, instead of the one having a 3-factor structure, was preferred and recommended to assess psychoactive substance refusal self-efficacy among Chinese adolescents. It is warranted to validate the scale in other adolescent and age groups in future studies.
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Lo, C. K., Tse, N., & Chiu, J. (2024). A mixed-method non-randomized pilot evaluation of a mentalization-informed motivational interviewing group intervention for concerned significant others of adolescents with excessive gaming behaviors. Children and Youth Services Review, 159, 107496. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2024.107496
Impact Factor: 3.3 (2022/2023)
Journal Rank: JCR - Q1: Social Work; Education (SSCI)
CiteScore - 6.3
Highlights
Concerned significant others (CSO) of adolescents with excessive gaming behaviors suffer from high levels of mental health symptoms.
A mentalization-informed motivational interviewing group intervention tailored for CSOs was developed and pilot evaluated.
The intervention has positive impacts on CSOs’ mental health and emotion regulation, and gaming-related parent–child conflicts.
Abstract
Existing interventions to address gaming disorder or excessive gaming primarily focus on individuals with the disorder. Little research has been undertaken regarding the development and evaluation of interventions tailored for concerned significant others (CSOs), who often feel distressed due to their loved ones’ excessive gaming. This pilot study adopts a mixed-method design to evaluate the impacts of four sessions of a mentalization-informed motivational interviewing group intervention for CSOs. For the quantitative evaluation, a non-randomized controlled design is used. The study involves 38 parents of adolescents who are experiencing excessive gaming in Hong Kong. The intervention group (n = 23) received the CSO intervention; the control group (n = 15) did not. A total of 12 qualitative interviews with the intervention group participants were also conducted to collect their views on the usefulness of the intervention. The quantitative findings show that the intervention group experienced significant improvements in mental health, emotion regulation, and gaming-related parent–child conflict from pre-test to post-test, compared with the control group. The qualitative data corroborates the quantitative findings and provides insights into potential reasons for these improvements. The findings contribute to the knowledge base regarding CSO interventions in the context of gaming disorder—an underexplored area of study.
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Tse, N., Tse, S., & Wong, P. (2022). Collective motivational interviewing for individuals with drug use problems: A pre-post-follow-up, uncontrolled pilot study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19, 16344. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192316344
Impact Factor: 4.614 (2021)
Journal Rank: JCR - Q1: Public, Environmental & Occupational Health (SSCI)
CiteScore - Q1 (Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health)
Abstract
Collective motivational interviewing (CMI) is a novelty motivational approach which optimises the motivational interviewing (MI) for individuals from collectivistic cultures. While MI has been empirically tested as an effective intervention for addictive disorders and has had a positive effect on facilitating lifestyle changes, CMI has retained the potency of MI as an individualistic intervention, and it further invites the social network resources to strengthen the level of motivation and cultivate a joint change partnership. This pilot study was the first clinical study of CMI to work with individuals with drug use problems (IDUPs) by involving concerned significant others (CSOs) in the three-session intervention, and the fidelity control was assessed by the Collective Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity (CMITI) scale. This pre-post–follow-up and uncontrolled feasibility study was conducted between 2017 and 2019, with dyads of 20 IDUPs and their CSOs. The potential impacts of CMI were examined by measures at baseline, post-intervention, and 1-month and 3-month post-intervention. All clinical sessions were audio-recorded, and four cases were randomly selected for fidelity review by two trained coders. The normality of data at the baseline was checked by a Shapiro–Wilk test. Non-parametric Wilcoxon-signed-rank test and repeated-measures ANOVA were employed for quantitative analysis. The results showed that six IDUPs had reduced drug use, and ten maintained drug abstinence with the support of CSOs, whereas four IDUPs remained unchanged or increased drug use. Overall, at the 3-month follow-up, drug use was reduced (p > 0.05), social support was strengthened (p < 0.05), and the IDUPs’ motivation for change was enhanced (p < 0.05). However, the small sample sizes, non-random sampling, and lack of control group may limit the generalizability and confirmation of the outcomes and of the “real effects”. This finding of the study suggests that the CMI is a feasible and acceptable therapeutic tool to motivate IDUPs with the support of CSOs to achieve mutually agreed-upon goals. Further development and evaluation with robust methodology are warranted.
Nick’s ResearchGate (Free to download the article):
Tse, N., Tse, S., Wong, P., & Adams, P. (2022). Collective motivational interviewing for substance use problems: Concept and implications. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 1-18. https://doi.org/h5qc
Impact Factor: 11.555 (2021)
Substance Abuse SCIE (Q1)/SSCI (Q1); Psychiatry SSCI (Q1)/SCIE (Q1)
Top Journal in Addiction Science in the Year 2021
Abstract
Collective motivational interviewing (CMI) breaks new ground by extending the theory of motivational interviewing (MI) beyond the individual to include the social network. We explain the core concepts of the six-process model of CMI, which involves multiple parties in the motivational process in embodying a spirit of “neutrality”. The semi-structured manual-guided CMI was trialed in persons with substance use with the support of concerned significant others (CSOs), which demonstrated positive outcomes on motivation, social support, frequency of drug use, and adherence to long-term drug treatments. Our developed CMI approach makes a clear contribution to the theory of MI and can potentially benefit people with substance use problems with complex needs. Presently, we are refining CMI and have been applying this approach to additional clients and CSOs. We call for more studies to monitor its fidelity and wider application in populations of individuals affected by substance use disorders.
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https://bit.ly/3IQVkq3
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Li, L., Zhu, S., Tse, N., Tse, S., & Wong, P. (2016). Effectiveness of motivational interviewing to reduce illicit drug use in adolescents: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Addiction, 111(5), 795-805. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.13285
Impact Factor: 5.789 (2016)
Substance Abuse SCIE (Q1)/SSCI (Q1); Psychiatry SSCI (Q1)/SCIE (Q1)
Top Journal in Addiction Science in the Year 2016
Abstract
Aims
Motivational interviewing (MI) is a commonly used intervention approach to promote reduction or cessation of substance abuse. Effects may be different for adolescents, so it is useful to assess the state of the evidence in this subpopulation. This paper aimed to assess evidence for MI effectiveness in adolescents.
Method
EBSCOhost, ProQuest and Digital Dissertation Consortium were searched using keywords. Ten randomized trials from the United Kingdom, United States and Taiwan, including 1466 participants, were identified and analysed using a random effects model. Primary outcome measures captured were: the extent of drug use, intention to use drugs and readiness to change. Each study received a high-quality score based on the Miller Quality Scoring Coding System. Moderator analyses were also conducted to examine the impacts of follow-up period, delivery setting and study design on the effectiveness of MI.
Results
No statistically significant effect of MI on was found change of drug use behaviours [d = 0.05, 95% confidence interval (CI) = −0.06, 0.17, P = 0.36]. A significant effect was found on attitude change (d = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.20, 0.67, P = 0.0002). The funnel plot was asymmetrical, suggesting publication bias favouring small studies with higher effect sizes.
Conclusion
Motivational interviewing has not been found thus far to reduce adolescent use of illicit drugs. It may influence intentions to change, but evidence of publication bias weakens confidence in this conclusion.