Association of exposure to the temporary abstinence campaign 'Tournee Minerale' with alcohol consumption among male and female participants: The mediating role of psychosocial determinants

Background and objective: Temporary Abstinence Campaigns [TAC] are an effective strategy to reduce alcohol consumption. However, it remains unclear whether the degree of exposure to TAC components is associated with changes in alcohol consumption among TAC participants and whether these are mediated through psychosocial determinants of alcohol consumption. Sex disparities in these associations should also be considered. This study aimed to examine the association of exposure to 'Tourne<acute accent>e Mine<acute accent>rale' (Belgian TAC) with alcohol consumption among male and female participants, as well as the mediating role of psychosocial determinants of alcohol consumption in this association Methods: Belgian adults participating in the campaign of 2017 were asked to complete three questionnaires before, six weeks after the start (post) and six months (follow-up) after the campaign. Mediation analyses were conducted for males and females separately who completed all three questionnaires (n = 8,730). The analyses were based on 5000 bootstraps with exposure to campaign materials (independent variable), psychosocial determinants of alcohol consumption at post (mediator, performed separately for each of the ten determinants), and weekly alcohol consumption at follow-up (outcome variable). Results: Male participants were less exposed to campaign materials compared to female participants. For males, a one-unit higher level of exposure to TMC materials was associated with a 4 % lower alcohol consumption at follow-up, but no mediation through psychosocial determinants was observed. For females, no significant association between exposure to TMC materials and alcohol consumption was found, but there were (small) significant mediating associations through habit of drinking alcohol and subjective norm to drink more. Conclusion: Exposure to campaign materials was found to play a minimal role in reducing alcohol consumption among TMC participants, and only in males. This relationship could not be explained by changes in psychosocial determinants of alcohol consumption targeted with the campaign materials.