Alpha wave biofeedback training therapy in alcoholics.

This investigation evaluated the therapeutic efficacy of alpha-wave biofeedback treatment for alcoholics. Twenty-five Ss were compared to a matched control group before and after administration of a 3-week alpha-wave biofeedback regimen on a wide variety of criteria that included State-Trait Anxiety, the MMPI, Multiple Affect Adjective Check List, Zuckerman's Sensation Seeking Scale, Watson's Anhedonia Scale, the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, and baseline alpha. The experimental Ss received 10 hour-long alpha training sessions. The experimentals showed more improvement than did controls on alpha production and two anxiety measure. Contradictory results appeared on two suspicion/paranoia measures. Alpha training appeared useful in the treatment of anxiety, but not other problems. However, the absence of significant correlations between amount of change on alpha and the anxiety measures suggests that the improvement may be due to a placebo effect.