Study on Let's Talk
试验速览
- 阶段
- 不适用
- 状态
- 已完成
- 发起方
- 入组人数
- 104
- 试验地点
- 1
- 主要终点
- Mental health symptoms: Measured through the 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21)
研究概览
简要总结
The goal of this experience sampling method study is to understand the effectiveness and user experience of the 'let's talk' forum-- a public platform designed by the Ministry of Health Office for Healthcare Transformation (MOHT) to provide just-in-time digital mental health support for youths. 'Let's Talk' is a joint initiative by MOHT, Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF), National Council of Social Service (NCSS), and the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) in Singapore.
Participants who meet the eligibility criteria (based on DASS-21 cutoff scores) will be invited to participate in Phase 2, which involves a 21-day intervention period involving the 'let's talk' forum. The experience sampling protocol involves sending prompts at regular intervals and monitoring anxiety levels.
详细描述
This study will involve three phases: (a) screening / baseline, (b) experience sampling, and (c) focus group discussions. Recruitment: Participants will be recruited through a combination of targeted and public outreach strategies. For non-NUS students, recruitment posters will be disseminated online via platforms such as Research Lobang, partner mailing lists, the study team's personal and professional social media accounts, and through a snowball sampling approach. Partner mailing lists will include those from our collaborating organisations, limited to participants who have consented to receive email communications. For National University of Singapore (NUS) students, pending relevant institutional approvals, recruitment posters will be shared through departmental email lists and social media platforms, targeting departments such as Psychology, Medicine, Science, and Engineering. Interested individuals will be directed to an online sign-up link included in the advertisement. Upon expressing interest, they will receive a link to a screening survey hosted on Qualtrics. Email invitations will be sent by authorised personnel with permissions to use the mailing list. We will also share the advertisement materials with MOHT who may assist in amplifying outreach to participants engaged through their previous campaigns or partner initiatives (excluding MOHT employees). Only participants who have consented to be contacted will be reached out to.
Phase 1: Screening Participants will sign up by responding to an online link provided in the advertisements. They will then be provided a survey link hosted on Qualtrics.
After reading a participant information sheet and providing consent, participants will complete questions on:
- Mental health symptoms: Measured through the 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21);
- Awareness, views and prior usage of mental health services, including let's talk, digital mental health services, and other mental health services. As part of this series of questions, they will be asked to complete the 10-item Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale - Short Form (ATSPPH-SF); and
- Demographics.
Phase 2: Experience sampling method protocol Participants who meet the eligibility criteria (based on DASS-21cutoff scores, see inclusion criteria section) will be invited to participate in Phase 2, which involves a 21-day intervention period on the let's talk forum.
研究设计
- 研究类型
- Interventional
- 分配方式
- Na
- 干预模型
- Single Group
- 主要目的
- Health Services Research
- 盲法
- None
入排标准
- 年龄范围
- 18 Years 至 25 Years（Adult）
- 性别
- All
- 接受健康志愿者
- 是
入选标准
- •Phase 1 Screening Inclusion Criteria:
- •Aged between 18-25 years if they are a student at the National University of Singapore (NUS); 21-25 years old if they are not a student at NUS
- •Must have lived in SG for at least 2 years
- •Have not received a formal diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder
- •Not currently receiving any form of mental health treatment (e.g., counselling)
- •Phase 2 Experience Sampling Inclusion Criteria:
- •- Partiicpants from Phase 1 whose DASS-21 scores are at least moderate for any one of the following sub scales (cut off of 14 for depression, 10 for anxiety, and 19 for stress).
- •Phase 3 Focus Group Discussions Inclusion Criteria:
- •Existing befrienders or peer supporters on the let's talk site (aged 21-80)
- •Agree to audio and video recording of FGD
- •Individuals who have completed phase 2
排除标准
- •Those who do not meet the inclusion criteria will be screened and excluded.
研究组 & 干预措施
ESM
During the 21-day experience sampling period, prompts will be sent at regular intervals during the waking hours of the day (approx 3-4 times in a day).These prompts will be delivered through participants' own mobile devices (e.g. through a WhatsApp, Facebook, or Telegram chatbot). At each prompt, participants will be asked to complete the 6-item state scale of the short-form Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) asking participants how calm, tense, upset, relaxed, content, and worried they feel (rating of 1='not at all' and 4='very much').
If participants report feeling 'moderately' or 'very much' anxious, they will then receive one of the following prompts (at random): (a) instructions to carry out an activity on the Let's Talk site (e.g., post a question to a therapist, post a question to peers, read prior responses), or (b) no further prompt. 30 minutes later, they will then be asked again: (i) for their STAI ratings, and (ii) whether they had used the Let's Talk site.
干预措施: let's talk forum (Behavioral)
结局指标
主要结局
Mental health symptoms: Measured through the 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21)
时间窗: Screening
The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 Items (DASS-21) is a set of three self-report scales designed to measure the emotional states of depression, anxiety and stress. Each of the three DASS-21 scales contains 7 items, divided into subscales with similar content. The depression scale assesses dysphoria, hopelessness, devaluation of life, self-deprecation, lack of interest / involvement, anhedonia and inertia. The anxiety scale assesses autonomic arousal, skeletal muscle effects, situational anxiety, and subjective experience of anxious affect. The stress scale is sensitive to levels of chronic non-specific arousal. It assesses difficulty relaxing, nervous arousal, and being easily upset / agitated, irritable / over-reactive and impatient. Scores for depression, anxiety and stress
Awareness, views and prior usage of mental health services
时间窗: Screening, 4 weeks after baseline, 8 weeks after baseline
As part of this series of questions, they will be asked to complete the 10-item Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale - Short Form (ATSPPH-SF). The ATSPPH-SF is a 10-item measure used to assess ATSPPH on a 4-point Likert scale, ranging from 0 to 3. Higher total score indicates more positive ATSPPH and is associated with lower levels of stigma against mental illness (Elahi et al., 2008). The ATSPPH-SF was reported to have unidimensional structure with Cronbach's alpha values of 0.84. Construct validity was reported to be 0.87, which was estimated by correlating it with the longer version (Fischer \& Farina, 1995).
STAI Rating
时间窗: Daily over 21 days
The Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) 6-item form is a shortened version of the original STAI, developed by Marteau and Bekker in 1992, which uses six items to measure state anxiety (how a person feels at the moment) while reducing respondent burden. This shorter scale maintains acceptable reliability and validity, produces scores comparable to the full-form, and is sensitive to fluctuations in anxiety.
Emotion Regulation
时间窗: 4 weeks after baseline, 8 weeks after baseline
The Brief-COPE is a 28 item self-report questionnaire designed to measure effective and ineffective ways to cope with a stressful life event.
Emotion regulation
时间窗: 4 weeks after baseline, 8 weeks after baseline
DERS-18 is a brief version of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, with 18 items, and is a brief version of the original 36 item DERS.
Attitudes, knowledge and behaviors regarding mental health and help-seeking
时间窗: Baseline, 4 weeks after baseline, 8 weeks after baseline
The Mental Health Literacy Scale (MHLS) is a 35-item, scale-based measure of knowledge and beliefs about mental disorders which aid their recognition, management or prevention (Jorm et al., 1997; O'Connor \& Casey, 2015). The MHLS assesses six attributes of mental health literacy.
次要结局
- Sense of isolation/belonging using UBC-SSCS(Baseline, 4 weeks after baseline, 8 weeks after baseline)
- Feedback on the let's talk forum(4 weeks after baseline, 8 weeks after baseline)
研究者
Jean Liu
Associate Director
Centre for Evidence and Implementation Singapore Ltd