Technology-based interventions for mental health in tertiary students: Systematic review
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: Mental disorders are responsible for a high level of disability burden in students attending university. However, many universities have limited resources available to support student mental health. Technology-based interventions may be highly relevant to university populations. Previous reviews have targeted substance use and eating disorders in tertiary students. However, the effectiveness of technology-based interventions for other mental disorders and related issues has not been reviewed. OBJECTIVE: To systematically review published randomized trials of technology-based interventions evaluated in a university setting for disorders other than substance use and eating disorders. METHODS: The PubMed, PsycInfo, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials databases were searched using keywords, phrases, and MeSH terms. Retrieved abstracts (n=1618) were double screened and coded. Included studies met the following criteria: (1) the study was a randomized trial or a randomized controlled trial, (2) the sample was composed of students attending a tertiary institution, (3) the intervention was delivered by or accessed using a technological device or process, (4) the age range of the sample was between 18 and 25 years, and (5) the intervention was designed to improve, reduce, or change symptoms relating to a mental disorder. RESULTS: A total of 27 studies met inclusion criteria for the present review. Most of the studies (24/27, 89%) employed interventions targeting anxiety symptoms or disorders or stress, although almost one-third (7/24, 29%) targeted both depression and anxiety. There were a total of 51 technology-based interventions employed across the 27 studies. Overall, approximately half (24/51, 47%) were associated with at least 1 significant positive outcome compared with the control at postintervention. However, 29% (15/51) failed to find a significant effect. Effect sizes were calculated for the 18 of 51 interventions that provided sufficient data. Median effect size was 0.54 (range -0.07 to 3.04) for 8 interventions targeting depression and anxiety symptoms and 0.84 (range -0.07 to 2.66) for 10 interventions targeting anxiety symptoms and disorders. Internet-based technology (typically involving cognitive behavioral therapy) was the most commonly employed medium, being employed in 16 of 27 studies and approximately half of the 51 technology-based interventions (25/51, 49%). Distal and universal preventive interventions were the most common type of intervention. Some methodological problems were evident in the studies, with randomization methods either inadequate or inadequately described, few studies specifying a primary outcome, and most of the studies failing to undertake or report appropriate intent-to-treat analyses. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this review indicate that although technological interventions targeting certain mental health and related problems offer promise for students in university settings, more high quality trials that fully report randomization methods, outcome data, and data analysis methods are needed.
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Digital interventions have the potential to improve mental well-being among university students.
“Several systematic reviews and meta-analyses have attested that digital interventions have the potential to improve mental well-being among this population [14,15,27-29]”
From Optimization of a Transdiagnostic Mobile Emotion Regulation Intervention for University Students: Protocol for a Microrandomized Trial (2023) · cites this paper as [29]
Young people regularly use and are generally satisfied with online mental health resources.
“Three reviews evaluating the acceptability and feasibility of mental health resources among youth suggested that young people regularly use and are generally satisfied with online mental health resources [40], [41], [42].”
From Interventions for Adolescent Mental Health: An Overview of Systematic Reviews (2016) · cites this paper as [42]
In the past 5 years, a number of literature reviews have highlighted an increase in research and development activities for eMental healthcare technologies for children and adolescents.
“In the past 5 years, a number of literature reviews have highlighted the increase in research and development activities for eMental healthcare technologies for children and adolescents [18-22].”
From eMental Healthcare Technologies for Anxiety and Depression in Childhood and Adolescence: Systematic Review of Studies Reporting Implementation Outcomes (2018) · cites this paper as [19]
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BackgroundCuijpers, P., Cristea, I. A., Ebert, D. D., Koot, H. M., Auerbach, R. P., Bruffaerts, R., & Kessler, R. C. (2016) · Depression and Anxiety · doi:10.1002/da.22461 · Cited by 137 · see citing works
“Several metaanalyses examined the effects of interventions among college students on general distress,[12] preventive, and early intervention,[3] and technology-based interventions.[13] However, no metaanalysis has tested the effects of psychological interventions of depression in college students.”
BackgroundInfluentialRice, S., Gleeson, J., Davey, C., Hetrick, S., Parker, A., Lederman, R., Wadley, G., Murray, G., Herrman, H., Chambers, R., et al. (2018) · Early Intervention in Psychiatry · doi:10.1111/eip.12354 · Cited by 118 · see citing works
“Innovative solutions are required to better manage attrition in e-mental health interventions, and next-generation interventions are required for relapse prevention, including inbuilt real-time social networking peer support, ongoing engagement, responsive professional moderation and engaging self-help content.(27,31)…”
BackgroundWeb-Based Intervention Programs for Depression: A Scoping Review and Evaluation
Renton, T., Tang, H., Ennis, N., Cusimano, M. D., Bhalerao, S., Schweizer, T. A., & Topolovec-Vranic, J. (2014) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/jmir.3147 · Cited by 116 · see citing works
“…substance use disorders [22], physical activity for type 2 diabetics [23], lifestyle behavior improvement [24], cannabis use [25], reducing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease risk behaviors [26], mental health in tertiary students [27], and chronic illness management [28], as well as others.”
Mental Health-Related Digital Use by University Students: A Systematic Review
Montagni, I., Tzourio, C., Cousin, T., Sagara, J. A., Bada-Alonzi, J., & Horgan, A. M. (2019) · Telemedicine Journal and e-Health · doi:10.1089/tmj.2018.0316 · Cited by 119 · see citing works
Exploring Digital Health Use and Opinions of University Students: Field Survey Study
Montagni, I., Cariou, T., Feuillet, T., Langlois, E., & Tzourio, C. (2018) · JMIR mhealth and uhealth · doi:10.2196/mhealth.9131 · Cited by 110 · see citing works
“Some mobile phone apps on addictions, sexual risks, and mental health have been developed, tested, and validated among students [13-16] and could be largely disseminated to the general student population.”
BackgroundConley, C. S., Durlak, J. A., Shapiro, J. B., Kirsch, A. C., & Zahniser, E. (2016) · Prevention Science · doi:10.1007/s11121-016-0662-3 · Cited by 110 · see citing works
“However, among systematic reviews involving higher education students, only two have focused on the use of technology for preventing mental health problems, outside of these circumscribed areas (Davies et al. 2014; Farrer et al. 2013).”
BackgroundEffectiveness of digital mental health interventions for university students: An umbrella review
Harith, S., Backhaus, I., Mohbin, N., Ngo, H. T., & Khoo, S. (2022) · PeerJ · doi:10.7717/peerj.13111 · Cited by 105 · see citing works
“Quality assessment and risk of bias assessment Using the AMSTAR-2 guidance to assess the quality of the manuscripts, three were classified as critically low (Conley et al., 2016; Farrer et al., 2013; Rith-Najarian, Boustani & Chorpita, 2019) and four were of moderate quality (Bolinski et al.”
InfluentialChan, J. K., Farrer, L. M., Gulliver, A., Bennett, K., & Griffiths, K. M. (2016) · JMIR Human Factors · doi:10.2196/humanfactors.4765 · Cited by 103 · see citing works
“Moreover, there is evidence that Web-based interventions targeting mental health are effective for university students [8] and that university students hold favorable attitudes towards Web-based mental health resources [9].”
BackgroundHerrero, R., Mira, A., Cormo, G., Etchemendy, E., Baños, R., García‐Palacios, A., Ebert, D. D., Franke, M., Berger, T., Schaub, M. P., et al. (2018) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2018.03.005 · Cited by 105 · see citing works
“Three resilience models have been identified to explain how promotive factors operate to change the effects of risk factors - compensatory, challenge and protective (Fergus and Zimmerman, 2005).”
BackgroundTechnology-mediated interventions for enhancing medication adherence
Mistry, N., Keepanasseril, A., Wilczynski, N., Nieuwlaat, R., Ravall, M., & Haynes, R. (2015) · J. Am. Medical Informatics Assoc. · doi:10.1093/jamia/ocu047 · Cited by 102 · see citing works
Dunbar, M. S., Sontag-Padilla, L. M., Kase, C., Seelam, R., & Stein, B. D. (2018) · Psychiatric Services · doi:10.1176/appi.ps.201700402 · Cited by 100 · see citing works
Web-Based Interventions for Youth Internalizing Problems: A Systematic Review
Reyes-Portillo, J. A., Mufson, L., Greenhill, L. L., Gould, M. S., Fisher, P. W., Tarlow, N., & Rynn, M. A. (2014) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2014.09.005 · Cited by 88 · see citing works
Musiat, P., Conrod, P., Treasure, J. L., Tylee, A. T., Williams, C., & Schmidt, U. H. (2014) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0093621 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
“A recent review of technology-based student mental health interventions suggested that 30% of such interventions are not effective and that some have not been specifically designed for students [16].”
BackgroundMedical informatics research trend analysis: A text mining approach
Kim, Y.-M., & Delen, D. (2016) · Health Informatics Journal · doi:10.1177/1460458216678443 · Cited by 82 · see citing works
“87 The Internet is also used for interventions to promote seeking treatment for mental health, online alcohol intervention, and online intervention for a health behavior change campaign.”
MethodMental health interventions for adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa: A scoping review
Mabrouk, A., Mbithi, G., Chongwo, E. J., Too, E. K., Sarki, A. M., Namuguzi, M., Atukwatse, J., Ssewanyana, D., & Abubakar, A. A. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2022.937723 · Cited by 82 · see citing works
Viskovich, S., & Pakenham, K. I. (2018) · Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1002/jclp.22656 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
A Robotic Positive Psychology Coach to Improve College Students’ Wellbeing
Jeong, S., Alghowinem, S., Aymerich-Franch, L., Arias, K., Lapedriza, À., Picard, R. W., Park, H. W., & Breazeal, C. (2020) · IEEE RO-MAN · doi:10.1109/ro-man47096.2020.9223588 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
“This trend has led to the rapid growth of scalable interactive technologies for mental health [5], [6], and the number of eHealth and mHealth options for care have increased significantly [7].”
Bantjes, J. R., Kazdin, A. E., Cuijpers, P. J., Breet, E., Dunn‐Coetzee, M., Davids, C., Stein, D. J., & Kessler, R. C. (2021) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/27400 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
“Self-guided and guided digital interventions are potentially scalable and cost-effective ways to close the mental health treatment gap and have been shown to be effective in treating university students with anxiety and depression [20-22], although many of these interventions have high rates of attrition and low rates…”
BackgroundLo, K., Waterland, J. L., Todd, P., Gupta, T., Bearman, M., Hassed, C. S., & Keating, J. L. (2017) · Advances in Health Sciences Education · doi:10.1007/s10459-017-9770-5 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
“Computer-based CBT appeared to be more effective in targeting anxiety compared to control conditions (Farrer et al. 2013).”
BackgroundRice, S., O'Bree, B., Wilson, M., McEnery, C., Lim, M. H., Hamilton, M., Gleeson, J., Bendall, S., D'Alfonso, S., Russon, P., et al. (2020) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2020.100323 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Melnyk, B. M., Amaya, M., Szalacha, L. A., Hoying, J., Taylor, T., & Bowersox, K. (2015) · Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing · doi:10.1111/jcap.12119 · Cited by 66 · see citing works
“The relationship between depression and academic outcomes was especially potent for students who had a coexisting anxiety disorder (Eisenberg et al., 2009; Farrer et al., 2013).”
BackgroundResultGulliver, A., Farrer, L. M., Chan, J. K., Tait, R. J., Bennett, K., Calear, A. L., & Griffiths, K. M. (2015) · Addiction Science & Clinical Practice · doi:10.1186/s13722-015-0027-4 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
“The terms relating to the concepts of tertiary students and technology were used in a previous review undertaken by the present authors [24].”
BackgroundMethodVersteeg, M., & Kappe, R. F. (2021) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2021.737223 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
Abelson, S., Lipson, S. K., & Eisenberg, D. (2022) · Higher education · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-76660-3_6 · Cited by 61 · see citing works
Levin, M. E., Krafft, J., & Levin, C. (2018) · Journal of American College Health · doi:10.1080/07448481.2018.1440580 · Cited by 56 · see citing works
“12,13 However, despite the growing research and dissemination of such resources, particularly online self-help, 14 there has been limited research to-date on whether self-help does actually provide such benefits.”
Kirsh, B. H., Friedland, J., Cho, S., Gopalasuntharanathan, N., Orfus, S., Salkovitch, M., Snider, K., & Webber, C. (2016) · Work · doi:10.3233/wor-152153 · Cited by 54 · see citing works
Fordham, B., Sugavanam, T., Edwards, K., Hemming, K., Howick, J., Copsey, B. J., Lee, H., Kaidesoja, M., Kirtley, S., Hopewell, S., et al. (2021) · Health Technology Assessment · doi:10.3310/hta25090 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
Wozney, L., McGrath, P. J., Gehring, N. D., Bennett, K., Huguet, A., Hartling, L., Dyson, M. P., Soleimani, A., & Newton, A. S. (2018) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/mental.9655 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
“In the past 5 years, a number of literature reviews have highlighted the increase in research and development activities for eMental healthcare technologies for children and adolescents [18-22].”
Self-citationGulliver, A., Bennett, K., Bennett, A., Farrer, L. M., Reynolds, J., & Griffiths, K. M. (2015) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/mental.4294 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
“Technology-based interventions show promise for treating common mental disorders such as depression and anxiety in university students [14].”
Bi, S., Yuan, J., Wang, Y., Zhang, W., Zhang, L., Zhang, Y., Zhu, R., & Luo, L. (2024) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/51714 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
Thompson, L. K., Sugg, M. M., & Runkle, J. D. (2018) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2018.08.025 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
Levin, M. E., Pistorello, J., Hayes, S. C., Seeley, J. R., & Levin, C. (2015) · Journal of Counseling Psychology · doi:10.1037/cou0000083 · Cited by 47 · see citing works
“This may be due in part to the fact that few available web-based programs are truly focused on the treatment needs of college students, tending to instead focus on broader prevention efforts (Farrer et al., 2013).”
BackgroundWilliams, A., LaRocca, R. A., Chang, T. E., Trinh, N., D, M. F. M., Kvedar, J. C., & Yeung, A. (2014) · International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications · doi:10.1155/2014/580786 · Cited by 47 · see citing works
“Yet there are few studies assessing the effectiveness and safety of such therapies formental health in the university setting [24].”
BackgroundFarrer, L. M., Gulliver, A., Chan, J. K., Bennett, K., & Griffiths, K. M. (2015) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/mental.3890 · Cited by 47 · see citing works
“Several reviews and meta-analyses have demonstrated that Web-based interventions are effective in reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety in both adults [12,13] and university students [14].”
BackgroundFarrer, L. M., Gulliver, A., Katruss, N., Fassnacht, D. B., Kyrios, M., & Batterham, P. J. (2019) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2019.100276 · Cited by 46 · see citing works
“Additionally, several systematic reviews and meta-analyses have indicated that online interventions targeting mental health problems are e ff ective for university students (Conley et al., 2016; Davies et al., 2014; Farrer et al., 2013; Harrer et al., 2019).”
BackgroundSelf-citationConley, C. S., Raposa, E. B., Bartolotta, K., Broner, S. E., Hareli, M., Forbes, N., Christensen, K. M., & Assink, M. (2022) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/34254 · Cited by 49 · see citing works
“These findings add to a growing body of mixed findings regarding the impact of prescribed and actual mTDI use on intervention outcomes [57,85,86].”
BackgroundResultInfluentialOvercoming mental health challenges in higher education: a narrative review
Duraku, Z. H., Davis, H., Arënliu, A., Uka, F., & Behluli, V. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1466060 · Cited by 66 · see citing works
Putting Technology Into Youth Mental Health Practice: Young People’s Perspectives
Montague, A. E., Varcin, K. J., Simmons, M. B., & Parker, A. G. (2015) · Sage Open · doi:10.1177/2158244015581019 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
“…online cognitive behavioral therapy [CBT] or online counseling via chat) have been found to produce treatment benefits of comparable effect sizes to face-to-face therapy for individuals with anxiety, depression, and eating disorders (for reviews, see Farrer et al., 2013; Richards & Viganó, 2013).”
Oliveira, C., Pacheco, M., Borges, J., Meira, L., & Santos, A. (2023) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2023.100609 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
Physiotherapy clinical educators’ perceptions of student fitness to practise
Lo, K., Curtis, H., Keating, J., & Bearman, M. (2017) · BMC Medical Education · doi:10.1186/s12909-016-0847-2 · Cited by 44 · see citing works
Glover, A. C., Schueller, S. M., Winiarski, D. A., Smith, D. L., Karnik, N. S., & Zalta, A. K. (2019) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/15144 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
“Research has shown that technology-based interventions are a promising way to deliver mental health treatment to various populations, including college students [10] and individuals with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder [11].”
Ahorsu, D. K., Sánchez-Vidaña, D. I., Lipardo, D., Shah, P., González, P. C., Shende, S., Gurung, S., Venkatesan, H., Duongthipthewa, A., Ansari, T. Q., et al. (2021) · International Journal of Mental Health Systems · doi:10.1186/s13033-020-00432-0 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
Dambi, J. M., Norman, C., Doukani, A., Potgieter, S., Turner, J., Musesengwa, R., Verhey, R., & Chibanda, D. (2022) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/37968 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
“High digital penetration is an essential predictor of the utility of digital mental health services [9-11,13,17].”
Dear, B. F., Johnson, B., Singh, A., Wilkes, B., Brkic, T., Gupta, R., Jones, M. P., Bailey, S., Dudeney, J., Gandy, M., et al. (2019) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2019.06.044 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Davies, E. B., Wardlaw, J., Morriss, R. K., & Glazebrook, C. (2016) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-016-2887-2 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
“Online and technological interventions for improving common mental health problems have shown promising results in student populations [60, 61].”
BackgroundInterventions in Chinese Undergraduate Students’ Mental Health: Systematic Review
Shan, Y., Ji, M., Xie, W., Li, R., Qian, X., Zhang, X., & Hao, T. (2022) · Interactive Journal of Medical Research · doi:10.2196/38249 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
“However, the available resources of many universities are too limited to support comprehensive approaches to students’ mental health, and students are frequently unwilling to visit traditionally structured student counseling centers for help [42,43].”
Nguyen‐Feng, V. N., Frazier, P. A., Greer, C. S., Howard, K. G., Paulsen, J. A., Meredith, L. N., & Kim, S. (2015) · Psychology of Violence · doi:10.1037/a0039596 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Clough, B. A., Nazareth, S. M., & Casey, L. M. (2020) · British Journal of Guidance & Counselling · doi:10.1080/03069885.2019.1673312 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
“Increasingly, technology based interventions are being used to support tertiary students, both with preventative and treatment approaches (Farrer et al., 2013).”
BackgroundMartineau, M., Beauchamp, G., & Marcotte, D. (2017) · Santé mentale au Québec · doi:10.7202/1040249ar · Cited by 30 · see citing works
A review of web-based support systems for students in higher education
Παπαδάτου-Παστού, Μ., Goozée, R., Payne, E., Barrable, A., & Tzotzoli, P. (2017) · International Journal of Mental Health Systems · doi:10.1186/s13033-017-0165-z · Cited by 30 · see citing works
“Students may also prefer computerized self-help as a means to increase independence and selfreliance [20], and perceive it as less stigmatizing than traditional therapy [21].”
BackgroundKaryotaki, E., Klein, A. M., Riper, H., Wit, L. D., Krijnen, L., Bol, E., Bolinski, F., Burger, S., Ebert, D. D., Auerbach, R. P., et al. (2019) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2018-028739 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
van Dooren, M. V., Siriaraya, P., Visch, V., Spijkerman, R., & Bijkerk, L. (2019) · Entertainment Computing · doi:10.1016/j.entcom.2019.100305 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Musiat, P., Potterton, R., Gordon, G., Spencer, L., Zeiler, M., Waldherr, K., Kuso, S., Nitsch, M., Adamcik, T., Wagner, G., et al. (2019) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2018.02.004 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
“The German version of the RSES demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.81) and acceptable test-retest reliability ( r = 0.73) after six months (Ferring & Filipp, 1996).”
InfluentialRiboldi, I., Calabrese, A., Piacenti, S., Capogrosso, C. A., Paioni, S. L., Bartoli, F., Carrà, G., Armes, J., Taylor, C., & Crocamo, C. (2024) · Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health · doi:10.2174/0117450179271467231231060255 · Cited by 29 · see citing works
Abelson, S., Lipson, S. K., & Eisenberg, D. (2021) · Higher education · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-66959-1_6-1 · Cited by 33 · see citing works
Biasi, V., Vincenzo, C. D., & Patrizi, N. (2018) · Journal of Educational and Social Research · doi:10.2478/jesr-2018-0019 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
A systematic review of technology-assisted interventions for co-morbid depression and substance use
Holmes, N. A., van Agteren, J. E., & Dorstyn, D. (2018) · Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare · doi:10.1177/1357633x17748991 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Ito‐Jaeger, S., Vallejos, E. P., Logathasan, S., Curran, T., & Crawford, P. (2022) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/38346 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
“They can attract especially young people because such resources are favorably perceived by them and are effective for them [10,11].”
BackgroundPatiño, A., Soledad, M., & Ibarra-Vázquez, G. (2023) · Contemporary Educational Technology · doi:10.30935/cedtech/13416 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
“In the same vein, Farrer et al. (2013) Also, Wang et al. (2019), in a review of 21 eligible articles to evaluate telerehabilitation, game-based, or web-based treatment, located moderate quality evidence showing that technology-assisted rehabilitation, in particular, telerehabilitation, results in…”
BackgroundPeynenburg, V. A., Mehta, S., & Hadjistavropoulos, H. D. (2019) · Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science/Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement · doi:10.1037/cbs0000165 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Körner, L. S., Mülder, L. M., Bruno, L., Janneck, M., Dettmers, J., & Rigotti, T. (2022) · Applied Psychology Health and Well-Being · doi:10.1111/aphw.12410 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Multicultural Developmental Experiences
Rivas‐Drake, D., & Stein, G. L. (2017) · Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America · doi:10.1016/j.chc.2016.12.012 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Shkel, J., Green, G., Le, S., Kaveladze, B. T., Marcotte, V., Rushton, K., Nguyen, T., & Schueller, S. M. (2023) · JMIR Formative Research · doi:10.2196/46062 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
“To date, most research on DMHIs has used quantitative measures and relied primarily on group averages to assess outcomes [12-15], subsequently masking individual differences.”
BackgroundFarrer, L. M., Gulliver, A., Bennett, K., & Griffiths, K. M. (2015) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2015.07.006 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
“Online interventions have demonstrated effectiveness for a range of mental disorders in adults (Andersson and Cuijpers, 2009; Griffiths et al., 2010), children and young people (Ye et al., 2014; Ebert et al., 2015), and students attending university (Farrer et al., 2013).”
BackgroundCelia, G., Cavicchiolo, E., Girelli, L., Limone, P., & Cozzolino, M. (2021) · Counselling and Psychotherapy Research · doi:10.1002/capr.12512 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Listiyandini, R. A., Andriani, A., Afsari, N., Krisnamurthi, P. B. U., Moulds, M. L., Mahoney, A., & Newby, J. M. (2024) · Mindfulness · doi:10.1007/s12671-024-02346-1 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
“Studies showed that such interventions reduce psychological distress among university students (Farrer et al., 2013, 2019; Harrer et al., 2018).”
Avoidance and Delay of Medical Care in the Young
Montagni, I., Langlois, E., Koman, J., Petropoulos, M., & Tzourio, C. (2017) · Young · doi:10.1177/1103308817734474 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
“Previous international research has confirmed that being in higher education is associated with many stressors, and common mental health problems are at their developmental peak in this transitional phase (Farrer et al., 2013).”
BackgroundThe Acceptability of a Smartphone App (BlueIce) for University Students Who Self-harm
Cliffe, B., Stokes, Z., & Stallard, P. N. (2022) · Archives of Suicide Research · doi:10.1080/13811118.2021.2022552 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Online support system for students in higher education: Proof-of-concept study
Touloumakos, A. Κ., Goozée, R., Παπαδάτου-Παστού, Μ., Barley, E. A., Haddad, M., & Tzotzoli, P. (2016) · Digital Health · doi:10.1177/2055207616655012 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
“In particular, meta-analytic studies of online interventions (randomised trials or randomised control trials) targeting anxiety symptoms and disorders and stress, or both anxiety and depression symptoms at the same time among HE students, showed that about half (47%) reported at least one significant positive effect i…”
ResultMontague, A. E., Varcin, K. J., & Parker, A. G. (2014) · Victoria University Research Repository (Victoria University) · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Risk and Protective Factors for Sexual Aggression and Dating Violence
Thompson, M. P. (2014) · Trauma Violence & Abuse · doi:10.1177/1524838014521025 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Buchner, U. G., Koytek, A., Wodarz, N., & Wolstein, J. R. (2018) · International Gambling Studies · doi:10.1080/14459795.2018.1515974 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
“above (Donkin & Glozier, 2012; Farrer et al., 2013; Rodda, Lubman, Dowling, & McCann, 2013) and offer the anonymity which is extremely important for highly shameful topics (Kohl, Crutzen, & De Vries, 2013).”
BackgroundHarrer, M., Apolinário-Hagen, J., Fritsche, L., Drüge, M., Krings, L., Beck, K., Salewski, C., Zarski, A., Lehr, D., Baumeister, H., et al. (2019) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00361 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Farrer, L. M., Gulliver, A., Katruss, N., Bennett, K., Bennett, A., Ali, K., & Griffiths, K. M. (2020) · British Journal of Guidance and Counselling · doi:10.1080/03069885.2020.1729341 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Mobile Phone Apps for Behavioral Interventions for At-Risk Drinkers in Australia: Literature Review
Choo, C. C., & Burton, A. A. D. (2018) · JMIR mhealth and uhealth · doi:10.2196/mhealth.6832 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
“Internet-based interventions have been found to be efficacious for mental health issues [3] in young adults [45,47,55].”
Solomou, S., Robinson, H., & Algorta, G. P. (2024) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0312123 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Irish, M., Kuso, S., Simek, M., Zeiler, M. D., Potterton, R., Musiat, P., Nitsch, M., Wagner, G., Karwautz, A. F. K., Bolinski, F., et al. (2021) · European Journal of Public Health · doi:10.1093/eurpub/ckab040 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
“11,12 Universities are ‘settings for health’ according to the World Health Organization (WHO) as students spend a lot of time in the university and can be easily reached 13 via the university setting.”
Pan, J., Carlbring, P., & Lu, L. (2022) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2022.100600 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Jackson, H. M., Gulliver, A., Hasking, P. A., Leach, L., Batterham, P. J., Calear, A. L., & Farrer, L. M. (2024) · Digital Health · doi:10.1177/20552076241277175 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
“13 Low-intensity programmes that target common problems affecting university students are suited to large-scale or ‘ universal ’ implementation, can provide prevention and early intervention, and are potentially more cost-effective and may lead to better population-level outcomes than…”
Durán, L., Almeida, A. M., Lopes, A. C., & Figueiredo‐Braga, M. (2022) · Healthcare · doi:10.3390/healthcare10010165 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Frazier, P. A., Richards, D., Mooney, J., Hofmann, S. G., Beidel, D. C., Palmieri, P. A., & Bonner, C. (2016) · Pilot and Feasibility Studies · doi:10.1186/s40814-016-0068-9 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
“[9, 14].”
Foster, J. A., Allen, B., Oprescu, F., & McAllister, M. (2014) · USC Research Bank (University of the Sunshine Coast) · Cited by 11 · see citing works
- Authors
- Farrer, L., Gulliver, A., Chan, J. K., Batterham, P. J., Reynolds, J., Calear, A., Tait, R., Bennett, K., & Griffiths, K. M.
- Affiliations
- Australian National University (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Farrer, Louise
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Medical Internet Research
- Publisher
- JMIR Publications Inc.
- Published
- 2013-05-27
- Volume
- 15
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- e101
- ISSN
- 1438-8871 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC3668609
- OpenAlex
- W2165984366
- Cited by
- 188
- References
- 66
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 16 · 2024: 19 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 21 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 13 · 2014: 11
- FWCI
- 1.64
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- Journal of Medical Internet Research (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- ANU Open Research (Australian National University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Australian Government
- Young and Well Cooperative Research Centre
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Student Stress and Coping
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Keywords
- technology-based interventions, student mental health, tertiary students, university students, anxiety disorders, depression, stress, online intervention, cognitive behavioral therapy, mobile health, digital mental health interventions, preventive interventions, intervention effectiveness, methodological quality, effect size, randomized controlled trials, implementation barriers, access barriers, barriers to use, barriers to retention, barriers to adherence
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Humans, Mental Health, Students, Universities, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Young Adult
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