Whether or not coping mediated the effects of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for alcohol use disorder (AUD) was conditional on dependence severity, according to a recent study. End-of-treatment coping mediated the positive treatment effects of CBT on 1-year drinking outcomes among outpatient clients when dependence severity was high, but not when dependence severity was low or moderate. Researchers conducted secondary data analysis of Project MATCH, a multi-site alcohol treatment trial in which participants (n=1,063), recruited in outpatient and aftercare arms, were randomized to 3 treatments: CBT, motivational enhancement therapy (MET), and 12-step facilitation (TSF). Researchers found:

• Among the full available sample, there were no significant moderated mediation effects.
• Double moderated mediation analyses indicated that several moderated mediation effects were moderated by treatment arm.
• In the outpatient arm, there were several significant moderated mediation effects, but no significant moderated mediation effects in the aftercare arm.