Matt Field

Matt Field
I'm a Professor of Psychology at the University of Liverpool, where I lead a small group of researchers investigating addiction, particularly alcohol problems. Our research is quite broad in scope, and includes laboratory work testing psychological processes in addiction, right through to studies of new treatments in clinics. You can read about our latest research findings on our blog here: http://livuniaddictiongroup.blogspot.co.uk/, or link to our pages on the University of Liverpool site here: http://www.liv.ac.uk/psychology-health-and-society/research/addiction/. I'm quite new to blogging but finding it very enjoyable and a pleasant change from the normal day to day stuff!

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Mixed effectiveness of population-level interventions to reduce alcohol consumption and harm

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Matt Field
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Alcohol is responsible for approximately 2.5 million deaths worldwide every year, making it the third largest cause of preventable death after tobacco and obesity. The economic burden to the UK has been estimated in the region of £20 billion per year, comprising the NHS bill, costs to employers and policing costs amongst other things. Reducing harmful [read the full story…]

Do people stop smoking if their doctor advises them to? Cochrane review says sometimes and it IS worth the effort

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Matt Field
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As previously discussed on the Mental Elf, the rates of tobacco smoking in most developed countries are falling, helped in part by high levels of taxation and bans on smoking in public places. However, over 20% of adults in the UK continue to smoke, and this means that smoking is the greatest single cause of [read the full story…]

A fine VINTAGE? The benefits and consequences of alcohol consumption in older adults

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Matt Field
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Senior couple drinking wine

We know a lot about the health consequences of drinking too much alcohol, but most of this research comes from studies of adults in their twenties, thirties and forties. But what about older adults? The European project VINTAGE reviewed and synthesised the available evidence relating to alcohol consumption in older people across many European countries. [read the full story…]

Tailored primary care intervention for heavy drinking may be counterproductive

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Matt Field
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Young man drinking

Approximately 15% of adults in Europe drink alcohol to excess, at levels that are likely to affect their health. Most of these people are not alcohol dependent and do not require intensive treatment such as detox and aftercare, but many of them would benefit from a ‘nudge’ to reduce their drinking to safer levels.  Screening [read the full story…]