Exploring Functions of a Smartphone-Based Digital Alcohol Consumption Intervention Mini-Program to Address Difficulties of Abstinence for Native Drinkers in China: A Mixed Methods Approach

Chinese Wine Culture influences people’s attitudes toward alcohol. The current study focuses on exploring the main features of a localized digital alcohol consumption intervention mini-program to address the difficulties of abstinence for native drinkers, as a promising way for long-term management of rehabilitation from alcohol use disorder. A mixed-method approach was used in this study. The self-report quantitative questionnaire recruited three groups of participants: 89 drinkers, 67 drinkers’ relatives, and 30 medical staff. The focus group qualitative interview inspected 36 participants’ perspectives on the core topics, including 21 drinkers, 4 drinkers’ relatives, and 11 medical staff. The results of combining the quantitative study and qualitative study indicated that the top difficulties of abstinence for native drinkers are the strong craving from the inside, the environmental influence, and the psychological health status, especially emotional states. Correspondingly, the most desired main features in an alcohol consumption digital intervention tool are the daily track of drinking conditions and craving level, periodic feedback reports that can share with others, and mood improvement training. Moreover, the top factors that influence participants’ intention to use/recommend the tool are whether the tool is effective, whether the user experience is good, and whether the tool can replenish the deficiency of the current alcohol treatment. Future work needs to balance what patients want and what others around them expect, so that potential users can benefit best from the digital intervention tool in the context of Chinese culture.