Reaching Women Under Stress from a Partner's Drinking Problem: Assessing Interest in Online Help

Assessing prospective program reach is an important step prior to any online-development effort. This study assessed, preliminarily, interest in a proposed online coping skills training program for women living with a partner with a drinking problem, including their (a) overall program interest; (b) relative preference for an online versus face-to-face format; (c) likely use of adjunctive, professional communications; and (d) use under alternate fee structures. In a community sample of women with problem-drinking partners (N = 73), interest was high (73%); 46% preferred the online format; 31% preferred online and face-to-face formats equally. Interest in adjunctive contacts was high, but diminished with fees; interest-level predictors were few. Online skills training could potentially reach a large portion of this frequently hidden, underserved population, and be financially feasible.