The Effectiveness of the Mobile-based Youth COMPASS Program to Promote Adolescent Well-being and Life-control

Well-being Clinical Trial

— YouthCOMPASS  

Official title:

The Effectiveness of the Novel Web- and Mobile-based Acceptance- and Commitment Therapy Program Youth COMPASS to Promote Adolescent Well-being and Life-control

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT03274934
• Other study ID #: 21000039071
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: September 21, 2017
• Est. completion date: December 31, 2019

Study information

• Verified date: April 2020
• Source: University of Jyvaskyla
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The aim of this randomized control trial is to examine effectiveness of individually tailored web- and mobile-based Acceptance- and Commitment Therapy interventions to promote adolescents' well-being and life-control and subsequently support their successful transition from basic education to upper secondary education. Our additional aim is to examine to what extent the effectiveness of the intervention varies according to intervention intensity and according to risk for school failure. The five-week structured intervention is delivered using the novel web-and mobile-based program Youth COMPASS following the principles of the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). The Internet context is assumed to be particularly motivating for youth who enjoy spending time online using different social media. Internet-based interventions have several advantages; they can include more information and treatment components than traditionally delivered treatments and that intervention programs are accessible at any time and at any place. Another unique aspect of the Youth COMPASS is the fact that it is individually-tailored. Each participant have an individually assigned online coach who provides support and encouragement, reminds about Youth COMPASS, sends individualized feedback, and recommends different exercises. The study hypothetizes that the Youth COMPASS is more effective than school counseling as usual. More specifically, the Youth COMPASS is expected to be more effective when it is combined with face-to-face support than when support and feedback are provided only via the Internet. Also, the Youth COMPASS with no face-to-face support (online only) is expected to be more effective than receiving only regular school counseling. Finally, the Youth COMPASS is expected to be more effective for students at risk for school failure than for students without risk for school failure, especially when at risk-adolescents receive more intensive support (i.e., both online and face-to-face support).

Description:

The aim of this randomized control trial is to examine effectiveness of individually tailored web- and mobile-based Acceptance- and Commitment Therapy interventions to promote adolescents' well-being and life-control and subsequently support their successful transition from basic education to upper secondary education. Our additional aim is to examine to what extent the effectiveness of the intervention varies according to intervention intensity and according to risk for school failure. The five-week structured intervention is delivered using the novel web-and mobile-based program Youth COMPASS following the principles of the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). The Internet context is assumed to be particularly motivating for youth who enjoy spending time online using different social media. Internet-based interventions have several advantages; they can include more information and treatment components than traditionally delivered treatments and that intervention programs are accessible at any time and at any place. Another unique aspect of the Youth COMPASS is the fact that it is individually-tailored. Each participant have an individually assigned online coach who provides support and encouragement, reminds about Youth COMPASS, sends individualized feedback, and recommends different exercises. The study hypothetizes that the Youth COMPASS is more effective than school counseling as usual. More specifically, the Youth COMPASS is expected to be more effective when it is combined with face-to-face support than when support and feedback are provided only via the Internet. Also, the Youth COMPASS with no face-to-face support (online only) is expected to be more effective than receiving only regular school counseling. Finally, the Youth COMPASS is expected to be more effective for students at risk for school failure than for students without risk for school failure, especially when at risk-adolescents receive more intensive support (i.e., both online and face-to-face support). The participants of the effectiveness study of the Youth COMPASS are selected from the participants of the broader longitudinal STAIRWAY (TIKAPUU in Finnish) - From Primary School to Secondary School study, which follows a community sample of Finnish adolescents (n~850) across critical educational transitions. The overall aim of the STAIRWAY project is to broaden our understanding of the individual- and environment-related factors that promote learning, well-being and successful educational transitions.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 249
• Est. completion date: December 31, 2019
• Est. primary completion date: December 15, 2017
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 14 Years to 16 Years

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Adolescents (n = 120) who have risk for school failure (learning difficulties or low grade point average without learning difficulties)

• Randomly chosen adolescents (n=120) from the same classrooms who have no risk for school failure

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Well-being

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Experimental: face-to-face and online support group:
5-week intervention according to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy principles with the web-and mobile-based Youth COMPASS program, face-to-face support (2 meetings) and weekly online mobile support and feedback from the individually assigned coach (one third of the participants is randomly assigned to this group)
• Experimental: only online support group:
5-week intervention according to ACT principles with the web-and mobile-based Youth COMPASS program, no face-to-face support, weekly mobile online support and feedback from the individually assigned coach (one third of the participants is randomly assigned to this group)
• Control
Control group, no intervention, school counseling as usual. (one third of the participants is randomly assigned to this group)

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
Finland	Department of Psychology, University of Jyväskylä	Jyväskylä

Sponsors (2)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
University of Jyvaskyla	the Finnish Cultural Foundation, Central Finland Regional Fund

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Finland, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Other	Achievement strategies (Nurmi et al., 1995)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Academic buoyancy (Martin & Marsh, 2008)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Recovery from school work (see also Winwood et al., 2005)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Child-Parent relationship (Pianta, 1992)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Student-Teacher relationship (Pianta, 2001)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Best Friend-Student (Bukowski et al., 1994) relationship	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Temperament (Rothbart & Ellis, 2001)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Substance use (Rimpelä et al., 2003)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Loneliness (World Health Organization)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Health behaviors (World Health Organization)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Dating	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Other	Having hobbies	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Life satisfaction (Diener et al., 1985)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Self-esteem (Rosenberg, 1965),	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Depressive symptoms (Salokangas et al., 1995)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Stress (Elo et al., 2003)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Difficulties and Strenghts questionnaire (SDQ, Goodman et al. 1997) measuring emotional symptoms, hyperactivity, conduct problems and prosociality	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Well-being in school (World Health Organization)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Career choice preparedness (Koivisto et al., 2011)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Primary	Educational expectations	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Secondary	Psychological flexibility (Greco et al., 2008)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Secondary	Mindfulness skills (Ciarrochi et al., 2011)	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Secondary	Identity formation (DIDS; Luyckx et al., 2008; see also Marttinen et al., 2016)	In addition to self-reports, also school register information is collected regarding academic performance, school absences and progress in studies.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention
Secondary	Truancy	Study has five timepoints when same questionnaires are administered to assess possible changes in the outcome measures.	Change from baseline at 2, 6, 12 and 18 months after the intervention.
Secondary	School grades	In addition to self-reports, also school register information is collected.	Four years from the baseline.
Secondary	Initiation of upper secondary education	In addition to self-reports, also school register information is collected.	Four years from the baseline.
Secondary	Progress in upper secondary studies	In addition to self-reports, also school register information is collected.	Four years from the baseline.
Secondary	Changes in study field in upper secondary education	In addition to self-reports, also school register information is collected.	Four years from the baseline.
Secondary	Staying in vs. dropping out of education	In addition to self-reports, also school register information is collected.	Four years from the baseline.
Secondary	Graduation time	In addition to self-reports, also school register information is collected.	Four years from the baseline.