RESUMEN
During the corona pandemic, youths were confronted with substantial challenges and in urgent need of information on how to prevent mental health problems. This experimental pre-post-follow-up study examined the efficacy and reception of an innovative website ( www.corona-und-du.info ) containing evidence-based information for youths on how to overcome psychological distress during the pandemic. 34 youths aged 11-18 years were presented domains of the website in the laboratory. Standardized questionnaires were applied to assess changes in knowledge, the reception of the website, and changes in behavioral intention to seek psychological help. For all content domains, we found a significant knowledge gain with large effect sizes from pre to post, and from pre to follow-up. The reception of the website was very positive, and participants indicated increased intention to seek psychological support when needed. The results constitute an important basis for future attempts to promote mental health information in youths in times of crisis.
RESUMEN
Research shows the important role of parents' mental health literacy in detecting depressive symptoms and supporting their children to seek professional help. Improving mental health literacy in parents has recently gained even greater importance due to the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children and adolescents' mental health. The aim of the present experimental pre-post-follow-up study was to examine knowledge change after the reception of contents from an innovative web-based platform ( www.ich-bin-alles.de/eltern ) containing evidence-based information on youth depression and mental health in parents of adolescents with a history of depression. A second aim was to assess evaluation of the layout and the acceptance of the platform. N = 33 parents of adolescents with a history of depression (either current or remitted depression) were presented different content domains of the website. Participants' knowledge about depression was assessed at pre- and post-intervention, and at a four week follow-up. Moreover, parents evaluated the acceptance and the layout of the website. The trial was preregistered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT05335564). The results showed a significant increase in total knowledge from pre to post, which remained stable over the course of four weeks. Explorative analyses showed that sociodemographic variables did not influence the extent of knowledge gain. Acceptance rates were high and evaluations of the website's layout were positive. The findings show that the web-based information portal is a promising and appealing means to increase parental knowledge on youth depression. Low-threshold psychoeducational approaches like websites are particularly relevant in times of crisis and increased prevalence rates of depressive symptoms and disorders (ehealth). These results are an important basis for future studies as well as approaches that aim to impart knowledge about mental disorders like youth depression via web-based means. Furthermore, they bear implications for policy decisions concerning mental health education and campaigns.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Adolescents with depression often show barriers to seek treatment offers due to various reasons, including limited knowledge about the manifestation of the disorder, its treatment options, or fear of stigmatization. Psychoeducational approaches might reduce these barriers by increasing depression literacy. The aim of the present randomized controlled study was to evaluate whether an innovative and age-appropriate evidence-based information booklet about youth depression increases depression-specific knowledge in adolescents with depression and is also appealing to the target group. METHODS: 50 adolescents with a history of depression (current/remitted) aged 12-18 years participated in the study including a pre-, post- and follow-up assessment. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The experimental group received a target group-specific information booklet about youth depression including seven subdomains. The active control group received an information booklet about asthma in youth that was highly comparable to the depression booklet in terms of format and length. Before and after reading, and at a four-week follow-up, we assessed knowledge about youth depression based on a questionnaire. Furthermore, participants evaluated the acceptability of the information booklets. RESULTS: Unlike the active control group, the experimental group showed a significant increase in depression-specific knowledge from pre to post and from pre to follow-up across all subdomains. This increase was evident in four subdomains ("symptoms", "treatment", "antidepressants", and "causes"). The overall reception of the information booklet about depression was positive and participants stated that they would recommend the information booklet about depression to their peers. CONCLUSION: This is the first randomized controlled study to demonstrate that an information booklet about youth depression effectively imparts depression-specific knowledge to participants with a history of depression and shows high acceptance. Information booklets that are appealing and increase depression-specific knowledge might be a promising low-threshold and cost-effective approach to reduce barriers to treatment and raise awareness.