CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 48Digital Mental Health InterventionsTechnology Use by Older AdultsAnxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes

Efficacy of internet-based interventions for common mental disorder symptoms and psychosocial problems in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Open access
Dworschak, Christine, Heim, Eva, Maercker, Andreas·2022·Internet Interventions
DOI 10.1016/j.invent.2022.100498PMC PMC8810404
Open this paper in CoChat — free accountOpen PDF

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Although a high proportion of older adults suffer from common mental disorder symptoms and psychosocial problems, only a small number of older individuals seek psychological treatment. Internet-based interventions have the potential to bridge this treatment gap. However, while there is extensive literature on internet-based treatments in younger to middle-aged adults, research on older individuals is lacking. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to summarize narratively and empirically the existing literature on the efficacy of internet-based interventions for the treatment of common mental disorder symptoms and psychosocial problems (loneliness, stress) in older individuals. METHODS: This systematic review and meta-analysis was registered in PROSPERO (registration number: CRD42021235129). Systematic literature searches were conducted in PsycInfo, Ageline, Medline, CINHAL, and Psyndex. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they a) focused on older adults, b) assessed the efficacy of an internet-delivered psychological intervention, c) included a control condition and d) assessed common mental disorder symptoms or psychosocial problems as outcomes. Meta-analyses were conducted based on studies that included a passive, minimally active or placebo control condition to estimate pooled effects on overall symptom severity as well as on specific psychological outcomes. RESULTS: 11 Studies met inclusion criteria, with the majority of interventions focusing on depression or anxiety symptoms and being based on CBT principles. Significant large effect of internet-based interventions for older adults were found for overall symptom severity (depression, anxiety, PTSD, stress) as well as for depression symptom severity. No significant effects were found for anxiety symptom severity. DISCUSSION: Our findings provide preliminary support that internet-based interventions might be a feasible and effective intervention method for the treatment of common mental disorder symptoms and stress in older adults. However, research in this area is still at an early stage. More studies are needed to shed light on the role of various treatment and patient characteristics in the efficacy of internet-delivered treatments.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1016/j.invent.2022.100498

Cites

65 of 65 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Internet-based interventions have proven efficacy in older adults.

    “meta-analytical findings proving the efficacy of internet-based interventions in this age cohort (Dworschak et al., 2022)”

    From Feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of an internet-based CBT intervention for loneliness in older adults: A pilot RCT (2024) · cites this paper as Dworschak et al., 2022

    The Discussion’s Summary of findings reports significant large effects for overall symptom severity and depression symptoms in older adults. But the Abstract’s Discussion calls the evidence preliminary, and the Conclusions note that only 11 studies met the inclusion criteria. The phrase “proving the efficacy” overstates the paper’s qualified finding. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

1 of the 66 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Foa E.B. PDS: Posttraumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale: Manual 1995 Pearson London
  2. Orioli E. Jaffe D. Scott C. The Ultimate Stress Management, Self-Assessment, And Coping Guide, Developed by Essi Systems 1991 Newmarket Press New York

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Related

Authors
Dworschak, C., Heim, E., & Maercker, A.
Affiliations
  • University of Zurich (CH)
  • University of Lausanne (CH)
Corresponding author
Dworschak, Christine
ORCID
Venue
Internet Interventions
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2022-03
Volume
27
Pages
100498
ISSN
2214-7829 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.invent.2022.100498
PMC
PMC8810404
OpenAlex
W4210291777
Cited by
48
References
66
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 7
FWCI
1.69
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Internet Interventions (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • SERVAL (Université de Lausanne) (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) (acceptedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • IRIS (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
  • Social Sciences › Demography › Technology Use by Older Adults
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
Keywords
online intervention, older adults, common mental disorders, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, loneliness, stress, cognitive behavioral therapy, treatment gap

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review