Comprehensive Prevention: A Secondary Analysis of Peripheral Outcomes of a School-based Prevention Program

• In Event: Poster Session 02
  In Poster Session: PS 02 Topic - Prevention and Interventions

Abstract

By the age of 18, 22-27% of adolescence have experienced depressive symptoms (Bertha & Balázs, 2013; Kessler, Petukhova, et al., 2012) increasing their risk of peripheral mental health and social issues such as emotional and behavioral problems (Ogundele, 2018; Ranney et al., 2013) and interpersonal concerns (Gorrese, 2016; Reijntjes et al., 2010). Efficacious prevention efforts specifically can decrease incidences of depression by 21% (van Zoonen et al., 2014). Yet, despite the development of effective depression prevention programs and the benefits associated (see Merry et al., 2011; van Zoonen et al., 2014, for meta-analyses), issues related to dissemination persist (Gillham et al., 2007; Merry et al., 2004; Wahl et al., 2014) and the ability of depression prevention to address peripheral mental health and social issues is under-explored. Therefore, this study aims to identify ways of increasing the likelihood of dissemination by investigating how prevention effects differ based on the professional background of the prevention program group leader and through evaluating adolescent depression prevention in terms of comprehensive prevention – prevention with the breadth to reduce peripheral mental health and social issues. Specifically, we investigate the effects of a school-based universal adolescent depression prevention program on emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity, peer problems, and prosocial behaviors. This cluster-randomized trial included 646 eighth grade students recruited from German secondary schools. Adolescents were randomized into three treatment conditions: a teacher-led 10-week prevention program, a psychologist-led 10-week prevention program, or a school-as-usual control. We hypothesized (a) that the effects of the prevention program on all examined mental health and social issues would be larger when led by mental health professionals than the same program led by non-mental health professionals (i.e., teachers); and (b) that the adolescent depression prevention program would positively impact total problems generally as well as emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity, peer problems, and prosocial behavior specifically. Results from hierarchical linear models provide partial support for our hypotheses. As hypothesized, the effects of the prevention program were larger when administered by a mental health professional in all cases except for hyperactivity in which we saw the opposite effect. Additionally, results reveal support for comprehensive prevention such that the depression prevention program was effective in reducing conduct problems, hyperactivity, and peer problems overtime. However, we did not find evidence that the program was effective in reducing emotional symptoms nor increasing prosocial behavior. Taken together, our findings warrant further research and suggest that depression prevention programs may have an effect on some peripheral outcomes, but not others, and that this effect may differ based on the profession of the group leader. With continued empirical research investigating the efficaciousness of comprehensive prevention, this type of prevention has the potential to impact a larger proportion of the population and improve the cost-benefit ratio of prevention, thus increase the likelihood of dissemination.

Authors

• Hayley D. Seely, University of Louisville
  Presenting Author

• Patrick Pössel, University of Louisville
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jeremy Gaskins, University of Louisville
  Non-Presenting Author

• Martin Hautzinger, University of Tübingen
  Non-Presenting Author